KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today criticised the Opposition for walking out of the Dewan Rakyat during a special sitting to discuss the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on the management and operations of Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH).
In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Anwar questioned whether the special sitting was intended to focus on him or the findings of the RCI into TH.
“Are we going to debate about me, or are we going to debate about Tabung Haji? Do you want to know about me, or do you want to know about the betrayal of Tabung Haji?” he said.
Anwar said the Malay-Muslim community had been betrayed, questioning why some parties continued to engage in political drama despite claiming to champion Malay-Muslim interests.
He also questioned whether Perikatan Nasional (PN), led by PAS, genuinely cared about the interests of ordinary Malaysians who had placed their savings in TH to perform the haj.
“Does PN, which is led by PAS, not care about the interests of the poor, fishermen, farmers, teachers, police officers, soldiers and retirees who work hard and save their money in Tabung Haji in order to fulfil the fifth pillar of Islam?” he asked.
Meanwhile, PKR vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa also criticised Opposition MPs for leaving the Dewan Rakyat, describing the move as disappointing.
She questioned who actually did not want the TH issue debated, saying Opposition MPs had been given the opportunity to question, challenge and debate the RCI findings.
“If there are RCI findings they disagree with, stand up and challenge them with facts. If there are government decisions they want to question, raise them in the Dewan. If there are parties they believe need to be defended, defend them with arguments,” she said in a statement today.
Zaliha said Opposition MPs should not speak about transparency, accountability, Islam and the interests of Muslims outside Parliament, only to leave when they were given the opportunity to debate the facts in the Dewan Rakyat.
She said the issue was particularly important as the RCI report concerned the management of, and trust in, the savings of TH depositors.
“This is not a small issue and not a space for a political stunt,” she added.
Zaliha said that if the Opposition was serious about defending the interests of Muslims, the Dewan Rakyat was the place to do so.
“Sit in the Dewan, examine the report and debate every matter they disagree with,” she said.
She added that by choosing to walk out, the Opposition had left the public questioning what it actually wanted from the TH debate.
The PN walkout followed dissatisfaction with Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul’s decision to proceed with the special sitting despite Anwar’s absence.
PN chief whip Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan had earlier proposed that the special sitting be postponed following the absence of Anwar and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, who are both receiving medical treatment. – August 11, 2026