KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Harapan has offered Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli as a replacement for Tony Pua in the debate with 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) president Arul Kanda Kandasamy.

The Opposition pact said it expected the other terms of the debate, like the live telecast by RTM, to remain unchanged.

DAP parliamentary whip Anthony Loke said they looked forward to discussing the matter with Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak, who is the minister in charge, and hoped that RTM would be agreeable to continue hosting the debate.

“If RTM is not agreeable, then we will open up to other media organisations who are willing to host it," said DAP parliamentary whip Anthony Loke.

“We don't think it would be possible to hold the debate this Friday, so let's discuss a suitable time with the minister. Maybe after Deepavali," he added.

Salleh had said on Wednesday that the live telecast of the debate was off as it was no longer between Pua and Arul.

Rafizi, who is PKR vice-president, has also been a vocal critic of 1MDB alongside Pua.

He said there was no way for Arul to wiggle his way out of the debate, although it was no longer against Pua.

“If Arul pulls out now, it will only show that he is not brave enough to face the public and that his agreement to the challenge prior to this was all just a trick to get Tony Pua removed from the Public Accounts Committee,” the Pandan MP said.

Rafizi said the Opposition had yet to decide what questions would be posed to Arul, including whether Pua’s initial 10 questions would be among them.

Pua was forced to pull out from debating Arul as his status as Public Accounts Committee (PAC) member would jeopardise the ongoing probe by the committee into 1MDB.







