PUTRAJAYA: Lim Guan Eng’s appointment as Finance Minister is not final until he takes the oath of office, said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today.
He said the government would obtain a report on Lim’s ongoing court case first before his appointment as Finance Minister is finalised.
“He (Lim) has not taken the oath of office but was only named (Finance Minister). The appointment of ministers must be done according to the rule of law. We’ll wait and see,” he said during a press conference at the Perdana Leadership Foundation here today.
Dr Mahathir said this in response to a question on whether Lim could be appointed as a cabinet minister, given his ongoing corruption trial.
The prime minister said he needed to make sure that all potential candidates for ministerial positions were eligible.
On June 30, 2016, Lim, 58, was charged with using his public office to obtain gratification for himself and his wife, Betty Chew, by approving an application by Magnificent Emblem Sdn Bhd (MESB) to convert agricultural land for residential purposes.
Lim was also alleged to have used his position to obtain gratification by purchasing a bungalow from Phang for RM2.8 million, which is below the property’s market value of RM4.27 million, on Oct 21, 2015.