This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on October 21, 2015.

KUALA LUMPUR: The Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) newly-appointed chairman Datuk Hasan Arifin yesterday said he has “no power” to remove DAP lawmaker Tony Pua from the committee.

Hasan on Monday said the committee would discuss Pua’s seat on the bipartisan panel when it resumed its meetings.

But at a press conference in the Parliament lobby yesterday, Arifin said that the committee would discuss the ethics and conduct of PAC members in general.

“I have no power to determine his membership in the committee. That is up to the select committee.”

However, Hasan said that the conduct of PAC members needed to be discussed.

This follows allegations by several Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmakers that Pua had abused his position in PAC by making public statements about 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), which the panel was investigating.

Pua had been accused of conflict of interest due to his critical statements against 1MDB and because he was also a police witness in investigations into 1MDB.

The DAP member of parliament, however, had said he never used confidential information given to PAC in his public statements about 1MDB.

Hasan yesterday criticised the statement made by DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang questioning if the new PAC chairman was trying to get Pua removed from the panel.

“That statement was political. And it was a quick advice and free tuition for me on how to run PAC.”

Hasan said that the select committee might decide on new members for the PAC by the end of the week. “I will decide after that [when to call for a PAC meeting].”

He added that PAC remained committed in continuing its inquiry into 1MDB.

A recent Cabinet reshuffle saw four PAC members, all from BN, taking up cabinet posts, leaving the select committee with the task of replacing them. — The Malaysian Insider