My call to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to break his silence on the RM9.5 million to lawyer Tan Sri Shafie Abdullah and whether he had three other Ambank accounts at the relevant time of the payments had been strengthened three days ago have been strengthened by two developments:

• Firstly, the explanation by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Nancy Shukri that she was not privy to the arrangements made by the Attorney-General’s Chambers and that when she answered in Parliament in 2015, she was reading out the information given to her by the AG Chambers that Shafee was only paid an official sum of RM1,000 for his role as prosecutor in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Sodomy II case at the Court of Appeal and Federal Court; and

• Secondly, Najib’s statement at Felda Sungai Sayong, Kulai that he wants the Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd (FGV) crisis to be resolved before Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

The RM9.5 million payments by Najib to Shafee from his personal banking account in Ambank purportedly for the appeals against the acquittal of Anwar in the Sodomy II case became a controversy well before the current FGV crisis, which saw a public confrontation between the FGV Chairman Mohd Isa Abdul Samad and the FGV CEO Zakaria Arshad.

If Najib wants to see the FGV crisis resolved before Hari Raya Aidilfitri, why should the Prime Minister be coy about ensuring that the latest crisis about public integrity and good governance over the alleged RM9.5 million payments by him from his Ambank personal bank account to Shafie are resolved before Hari Raya Aidilfitri, so as not to mar the holy month of Ramadan?

Muslims friends have explained that Ramadan is not only about abstaining from food and water, but also to refrain from sinful behavior as avoiding ill speech, arguments, loss of temper and malicious behavior.