The meeting of progressive Members of Parliament in Parliament at noon tomorrow provides an ideal platform for the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, to clear himself of the Wall Street Journal allegation of embezzlement – and Najib is most welcome to make use of the platform.

Progressive MPs are meeting in Parliament tomorrow on the theme “Quo Vadis Malaysia with a Prime Minister accused of embezzlement” because responsible and patriotic MPs are most disturbed and shocked by the Wall Street Journal report last Friday that Malaysian investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) of 1MDB’s funds have been deposited into Najib’s personal bank accounts.

The Wall Street Journal allegation has shaken Malaysian body politics to its very core for two reasons:

• No categorical denial by the Prime Minister of the existence of such personal bank accounts or the deposit of some US$700 million (RM2.6 million) funds into the personal bank accounts in the past three days in an information era which operates on 24/7 basis;

• Confirmation by the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail that he has viewed documents collected by a government special task force quartet comprising Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Royal Malaysian Police (RMP) and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) relating to the alleged transfer of 1MDB funds into Najib’s bank accounts.

The Attorney-General’s statement is in fact a confirmation of the WSJ report that Malaysian government investigators have found documents showing that US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) had been deposited into the Prime Minister’s personal accounts.

Overnight, Malaysian politics underwent a sea-change and Malaysian politics will never be the same again, before and after the WSJ Report“Investigators Believe Money Flowed to Malaysian Leaders’ Accounts Amid 1MDB Probe” on Friday.

Malaysians are perplexed, confused and most uneasy that up to now, Najib cannot give a simple and categorical answer to just say “yes” or “no” to the grave WSJ allegation that almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) were deposited into his personal accounts before the 13th General Election and whether such personal accounts existed.

Progressive MPs, who believe that the topmost priority of the country must be “good governance” as the country is mired in unprecedented corruption, abuses of power and socio-economic injustices, want to keep an open mind on the WSJ allegation, but every day that passes without a categorical answer by Najib whether US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) had been deposited into his personal accounts is an additional day of adverse inference for Najib, inimical to public perception that he is true and loyal to the National Transformation Programme of clean, honest, accountable and transparent governance.

Najib should heed the advice of his younger brother and CIMB Chairman, Datuk Seri Nazir Razak who, in a posting on Instagram with a photograph of the National Monument, penned that in “this darkest of political times, we must remember to place the country and the rakyat first” – “Not personal interests, nor personal loyalties, not even party politics.”

Malaysia is facing the greatest Prime Ministerial crisis in the nation’s history, as never before had such a serious allegation of Prime Ministerial criminal misconduct had been leveled against the Prime Minister – and by a reputable international publication based on a government probe into the 1MDB!

Why is there no emergency Cabinet meeting, special meeting of Parliament, emergency meeting of UMNO Supreme Council and the Barisan Nasional Supreme Council?

Why is everybody pretending, whether Najib, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the 35-strong Cabinet, Parliament Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, Attorney General, Bank Negara Governor, Inspector-General of Police, the MACC Chief Commissioner, all the Barisan Nasional party chiefs all pretending to be “business as usual” as if nothing amiss had happened in Malaysia while the whole world is agog with Malaysia’s political crisis?

Where does Malaysia, and in particular the Malaysian government, go from here? How are Malaysians going to hold their heads high in the international arena?
This is the agenda for the meeting of progressive MPs in Parliament tomorrow.

Progressive MPs keep an open mind on the WSJ allegation which is now backed up by the government special task force probe as confirmed by the Attorney-General.

Is Najib prepared to come to the meeting of progressive MPs tomorrow in Parliament to clear himself once and for all of the WSJ allegations?