Mat Sabu: I Will Resign Only if PM Asks Me To

KLANG: Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Mohamad Sabu, has emphasized that he will only step down if Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim instructs him to do so.

Mohamad, who is also the President of Amanah, made this statement in response to a challenge from former Deputy Minister of Law, Hanipa Maidin, who asked him to resign if the government continued to block an anti-corruption rally scheduled to take place in Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.

According to a previous report by Malaysiakini, Hanipa claimed that he had been arrested multiple times while defending Mohamad’s right to participate in peaceful assemblies.

“(Hanipa) is free to express his opinion in a democratic world,” said Mohamad at a press conference after delivering his keynote speech at Amanah’s annual national convention today.

When asked if there was any reason for him to resign from the Cabinet, he replied, “That would only be if the Prime Minister asks me to.”

Mohamad, also known as Mat Sabu, added that Amanah members were free to attend the rally if they wished, and he had no issue with that.

“This is a democracy, and we are free to demonstrate. Anyone who wants to participate, there is no problem. It’s just that we have a convention now. Otherwise, some of us might have attended,” he said.

Meanwhile, regarding Amanah Youth’s more measured response to the recent controversy surrounding a pre-packed chicken ham and cheese sandwich, Mohamad said the youth wing had been advised to avoid racially charged statements.

“Sometimes, when we issue a statement, we must remember that we live in a multiracial society. A statement might please one community but alienate others,” he said.

He also acknowledged that Amanah has not yet gained full support from Malay-Muslim voters. However, he believes that public confidence in the party is growing ahead of the 16th general election.

“We are optimistic that we are expanding, and our membership grows every month. Amanah was only established in 2015, and by 2018 and 2020, we were already in government. We are still working to broaden our influence,” he said.