PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has advised Economic Affairs Minister Azmin Ali and Selangor Mentri Besar Amirudin Shari to cooperate with the police in investigations into the sex video scandal.
Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah was reported by Utusan Malaysia as saying this after the two men said they knew who was behind the video that was circulated online last month.
Wan Azizah is the wife of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who has been locked in a public feud with PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Azmin over the sex video. Mr Anwar had said that Mr Azmin should resign if he was identified as one of the two men in the video.
"It's best if he and the Selangor MB cooperated with the police," she said at an event in Putrajaya on Monday (July 22). "This is because they seem to have information that could help with the investigation of the case."
Datuk Seri Azmin, who has denied that he is one of the two men in the video, has said the video is a dirty political trick mean to discredit him. He has said that he knew the mastermind behind the video. Mr Amirudin was also reported to have said that the mastermind was someone who had suffered a similar "dark period" 20 years ago.
So far, 11 people have been detained over the case, with five subsequently released after their remand order expired last Thursday.
Among those detained are former Parti Keadilan Rakyat's Santubong Youth chief, Mr Haziq Abdullah Abdul Aziz, and Mr Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak, who is Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's political secretary and Perak PKR chief.
Mr Haziq has confessed publicly that he was one of the two men in the video and alleged that the other person was Mr Azmin.
Last week, Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador said CyberSecurity Malaysia determined that the video was likely authentic, but could not identify those in the video through facial recognition software.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, in his strongest rebuke yet over what he views as a political conspiracy, said in a blog post on Tuesday that he will not be moved to take action against Mr Azmin.
Last week, Datuk Seri Anwar said the party has accepted the police statement that Datuk Seri Azmin is not involved in the video.
