PETALING JAYA: Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan has dismissed claims that the party’s youth wing had attempted to racialise the investigation into former attorney general Tommy Thomas’ memoirs for the sake of political gain.

Shahril said that the probe against Thomas was about maintaining the integrity and transparency of the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) to ensure no misdeeds were committed.

“Thomas’ unfounded allegations raised the concern among many about the integrity of the AGC under his leadership which is why the investigation was called.

“I want to emphasise that even if the author of the memoir was named Taufik, Talib, or Tahir, they should be investigated,” Shahril said in a Facebook post, adding that the investigation had nothing to do with race.

Shahril was responding to PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli’s claim that the Umno Youth wing was trying to racialise the government’s investigation into the case in an attempt to win Malay votes.

Thomas was probed over his controversial memoir under the Sedition Act, Official Secrets Act, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act, and the Penal Code.

The probe was officially ordered by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob last week.