Anthony Loke resigns as transport minister while DAP stays in government

KUALA LUMPUR: DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke Siew Fook has announced his resignation as transport minister, making him the only cabinet casualty so far of the decision to let former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak serve out his sentence at home.

He announced it at a press conference at DAP headquarters in Pudu on Saturday, after chairing an emergency meeting of the party's central executive committee that ran nearly three hours from 3.30pm.

"I put this proposal to the CEC and we decided that I would resign, as the party's response to what has happened," he said.

Loke said the resignation letter would go to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim shortly. At the time of writing there was no confirmation that it had been received or accepted.

The move involves him alone as minister, he said.

"The others, even though they too were ready and willing to give up their posts at any time, the CEC has decided that for now they will remain in office," he said.

DAP is the largest component of Pakatan Harapan and holds 12 government positions. Loke said the party would stay in the unity government to keep it from being toppled. He also remains DAP secretary-general, a post he has held since March 2022.

What drove the decision

The party's position had been set out a day earlier. In a statement on Friday, Loke said DAP had always upheld the principles of constitutional monarchy and the supremacy of the constitution, while defending the rule of law and the fight against corruption.

The party respects the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's power of clemency as provided for in the Federal Constitution, he said, while maintaining the demand it has made from the outset for justice and accountability over the 1MDB scandal.

Public anger over that scandal was a major factor in the change of government in 2018, Loke said, and its effect on the country should not be forgotten. He put the total 1MDB obligations at RM51.4 billion, of which RM42.5 billion has already been paid by the government.

That is where the collision lies. Pakatan Harapan has held that those convicted of corruption or abuse of power, particularly in high-profile cases, should serve their sentences in full. The coalition's presidential council on Friday backed the prime minister's position and said no one is above the law.

Two days before the pardon was announced, Loke himself had urged the Negeri Sembilan executive councillors to resign as a matter of principle and dignity if they no longer recognised Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir as the Yang di-Pertuan Besar.

The decision that triggered it

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim, granted Najib a conditional pardon on Friday, allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until August 23, 2028. The pardon is conditional on payment of the RM50 million fine and on compliance with the conditions set.

The fine has not been paid. Umno launched the Najib Razak Solidarity Fund the same evening, and the party's secretary-general, Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, said collections reached RM634,562.02 in the first three hours.

The ministry and the record

Loke said the ministry's work would not be disrupted.

"Ministers come and go, the ministry will function as usual. I will need some time because there is some outstanding work," he said, adding that ongoing projects would continue. No successor was named at the time of the announcement.

He held the transport portfolio over two periods, from 2018 to 2020 under the Pakatan Harapan government, and again from December 2022 in the unity government.

His second term brought digital road tax and driving licences through the MyJPJ app, a rebuilt Kejara demerit points system, the end of Puspakom's monopoly on vehicle inspections with three new companies appointed, and the Teksi Madani taxi renewal programme. Infrastructure work including the RTS Link testing phase and the ECRL completion schedule also moved under his watch.