KUALA LUMPUR - Putrajaya will not disclose alleged gambling kingpin Paul Phua's involvement in matters of national security as purported in Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s letter to the US as it is highly confidential.
“The government does not plan to disclose any information related to Phua Wei Seng in matters of national security because it is Top Secret and classified under the Official Secrets Act 1972,” Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim told DAP MP Lim Lip Eng in a single line in a Parliamentary reply yesterday.
A displeased Lim pointed out to reporters that he had not sought to find out the content of the national security “projects” that Phua was purportedly involved in, but merely sought to find out how many times the Malaysian had contributed to the country in such matters.
“To me, that is not national secret. Nothing to do with national security. It will not jeopardise the peacefulness of our country,” he said, adding that two former home ministers — Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar — previously told reporters that they had never written to the US's Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
In a parliamentary question, Lim had asked the prime minister to state how many federal ministers had written official letters to the FBI and how many times Phua was involved in projects involving national security.
In January, a letter from Ahmad Zahid surfaced at the trial of Phua, a former Macau junket operator who is facing illegal gambling charges in the US for taking bets during the World Cup last summer.
In the letter signed by the home minister, it stated that based on the ministry’s information, Phua is neither a member nor associated with the 14K Triad.
The letter also stated that according to its records, Phua has on numerous occasions assisted the Malaysian government on projects affecting the country’s national security.
Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim
Zahid’s letter to the FBI dated December 18, 2014, was reportedly withdrawn as evidence in Phua’s illegal gambling trial in Las Vegas after Putrajaya objected to it being made public.
The minister later defended his decision to write to the FBI clarifying Phua’s alleged involvement with the 14K triad, saying it was done within his powers as the home minister.
He also said he could not reveal why he wrote that Phua was assisting Putrajaya on security matters, adding that the letter was written following a request by the firm representing Phua here, Shafee & Co.
US authorities alleged that Paul is part of the 14K triad, which has been described as a fearsome Hong Kong-based triad with international reach.
Both Phua and his son, Darren, were charged in a Las Vegas court on August 5 last year.
Darren reportedly agreed last Friday to a plea deal, avoiding prison in return for a US$100,000 (RM368,570) fine and forfeiture of US$125,000, besides admitting to sending gambling information.
The elder Phua is set to go on trial in the US next month. - Malay Mail
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