Archive for category Najib Razak
Malaysia Premier Najib Under Fire: What You Need to Know
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Friday, 10 July 2015
by Niluksi Koswanage Shamim Adam
Bloomberg
July 9, 2015
As Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak fights claims aired in a Wall Street Journal report that about $700 million in funds connected to a state investment company allegedly ended up in his personal bank accounts, here’s a guide on the key players in the furor and what to watch for.
Q: What is 1Malaysia Development Bhd. or 1MDB?
Najib chairs the advisory board of the debt-ridden state investment company. The Wall Street Journal reported July 3 that money may have moved through government agencies and companies linked to 1MDB before apparently appearing in Najib’s personal accounts. A task force investigating the claims visited 1MDB’s Kuala Lumpur headquarters on Wednesday and left with documents.
1MDB had its origins in the Terengganu Investment Authority, which was created in 2009 to invest oil royalties from the state of Terengganu. When Najib became prime minister that year it was renamed 1MDB, became a national entity and its funding source was changed to government-backed debt.
The company has courted controversy, accumulating $11 billion of debt in less than five years, paying a premium in the acquisition of energy assets, and criticized for overpaying Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to manage its bond sales.
1MDB flirted with default when it missed a loan repayment late last year and eventually settled it in February. It announced plans the same month to wind down, with asset sales or an initial public offering of its energy unit, and the spinning off of its property businesses. Its purpose was to serve as a catalyst for projects of strategic importance, it said Feb. 18, and it’s “achieved this.”
The auditor-general has been probing 1MDB’s finances since March. It is set to hand its interim report on Thursday to a parliamentary committee. Read the rest of this entry »
Hisham fools himself!
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Hishammuddin, Martin Jalleh, Najib Razak on Friday, 10 July 2015
By Martin Jalleh
Najib should heed Musa Hitam’s advice and immediately go on leave as Prime Minister pending investigation by an independent commission of inquiry
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Friday, 10 July 2015
Datuk Seri Najib Razak should heed the advice of his former mentor, former Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Musa Hitam that he should go on leave as Prime Minister pending investigation into the Wall Street Journal report and allegation of US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into his personal accounts in AmBank within to weeks of the dissolution of Parliament on 3rd April 2013 and his role and involvement in the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal.
Najib had accused former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir of “working hand in glove with foreign nationals” in “a concerted campaign of political sabotage to topple a democratically-elected Prime Minister”, but Najib cannot make such an accusation against Musa.
In an exclusive interview with The Malaysian Insider, Musa said Najib has three options: (I) to remain in office and fight the allegations; (ii) resign as Prime Minister; and (iii) go on leave pending investigations by a special government task force.
Musa personally would prefer if Najib takes the third option to allow for an open and transparent investigation, as he holds dear to the legal maxim that one is innocent until proven guilty and this applies to Najib. Read the rest of this entry »
Going on leave best of 3 options for Najib, says Musa Hitam
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, UMNO on Friday, 10 July 2015
by V. Anbalagan
The Malaysian Insider
10 July 2015
Embattled Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has three options to consider for his immediate future as he wards off allegations that US$700 million (RM2.67 billion) was transferred into his personal bank accounts, Tun Musa Hitam told The Malaysian Insider.
The former deputy prime minister said Najib could: 1) remain in office and fight the allegations, 2) resign as prime minister and, 3) go on leave pending the investigations by a special government task force.
On a personal note, Musa said he would prefer it if Najib took the third option to allow for an open and transparent investigation.
Speaking exclusively to The Malaysian Insider yesterday, the 81-year Musa said he could no longer sit quietly as the issue gripped the nation. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib, Misappropriation is Not the Main Issue
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Friday, 10 July 2015
By Kee Thuan Chye
Malaysiakini
Jul 9, 2015
COMMENT A few things related to the Wall Street Journal’s expose of 1MDB funds having been deposited into Prime Minister Najib Razak’s private AmBank accounts are becoming clearer.
Najib has not denied that he received the US$700 million (RM2.66 billion). And that is very telling. Instead, he is constantly harping that he did not use the money for his personal interest.
He could be telling the truth there because the bulk of the money might have been used to finance Barisan Nasional’s campaign during the 13th general election (GE13) in May 2013.
But even so, it is wrong for him to receive the public funds – if he did receive them. It constitutes a crime. That is the main issue of the case. But he has not addressed it.
That is the issue that the special task force set up to investigate the scandal should focus on. But Najib has announced that the scope of the investigation is only to determine whether he misappropriated the funds for his own use. And this is the same line he is taking with WSJ. Read the rest of this entry »
FAQ on WSJ’s money trail exposé
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Friday, 10 July 2015
By Malaysiakini Team
Jul 9, 2015
On July 3, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) dropped a bombshell on Malaysians by claiming that nearly US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) somehow made its way to bank accounts allegedly owned by our prime minister.
Given the complexity of the issue, Malaysiakini has compiled a series of questions sourced from our readers as well as our newsroom, and attempts to answer them.
1. What exactly was the WSJ report about?
The report claims that an ongoing probe by Malaysian investigators have traced nearly RM2.6 billion being transferred into what they believe to be Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s personal bank accounts.
2. Are the accounts really owned by Najib?
The WSJ report does not say this with certainty. They note that remittance documents show account numbers, but does not name Najib.
However, they are in possession of flow charts, purportedly obtained from Malaysian investigators, which attributed the accounts to Najib.
Whistleblower website Sarawak Report, which published a similar report on the same day as the WSJ, claimed that the accounts – bearing the name AmPrivate Banking-1MY, AmPrivate Banking-MY and AmPrivate Banking-MR – indeed belonged to Najib.
3. Has Najib explicitly denied owning the accounts?
No.
4. Has Najib explicitly denied that the transactions took place?
Cabinet Ministers guilty of abysmal dereliction of duty by giving solid backing to the Prime Minister without knowing whether RM2.6 billion were deposited into Najib’s personal accounts in AmBank, where the monies came from and were they went to
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 July 2015
One should thank the lawyers of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, for providing some relief to the long drawn-out (six years?), sordid, dreary and astronomical 1MDB scandal which is claiming more and more casualties in its wake, destroying reputations for integrity and even political and professional lives and futures.
The highly-publicised letter from Najib’s lawyers to Dow Jones, the owner of Wall Street Journal (WSJ), has become not only the toast of lawyers but of the international civil society as well.
There was no categorical demand for retraction of the WSJ report last Friday that Malaysian government investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into Najib’s personal accounts at AmBank, unconditional apology for the defamation of the Prime Minister, undertaking of no repetition of the defamation and payment of damages, but a most extraordinary (Eric Paulsen of Lawyers for Liberty described it as “bizarre”) letter seeking clarification!
No one can describe the situation better than lawyer Azhar Harun (better known as Art Harun) who commented on Facebook this was the first time he found lawyers asking their potential opponent the meaning of what they had published. Almost every sentence made him cringe.
He said: “If I were acting for Dow Jones, I would advise them to reply as follows : Dear lawyers, inability to grasp and/or understand what we had published is not a known or established ground for defamation suits. Thank you.”
If more “relief” is needed, there is the top banker, CIMB Islamic Bank chief executive officer Badlisyah Abdul Ghani for everybody to joke about as Badlisyah joined the long queue of 1MDB casualties when in a matter of hours, he had to eat his own words for accusing WSJ of falling for false documents with regard to its report claiming that RM2.6 billion were deposited into Najib’s personal accounts in AmBank.
As if Fate has pity on Malaysia in having to suffer from the 1MDB scandal, Malaysians were presented with another “manna” today – the announcement that Najib is scheduled to speak at a high-profile international anti-corruption conference themed: “Ending Impunity: People. Integrity. Action” in Putrajaya from Sept. 2 amid allegations that he embezzled US$700 million in state funds! Read the rest of this entry »
3 questions for new Cabinet
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Good Governance, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 July 2015
Rama Ramanathan
The Malaysian Insider
9 July 2015
Because of 1Malayisa Development Bhd (1MDB), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak must soon vacate his position. His successor will replace the Cabinet. What should we look for in the new Cabinet?
Of the many facts about 1MDB, I consider three to be especially pertinent: (1) the only money 1MDB ever had was borrowed – mainly from banks and partly from government agencies; (2) most of 1MDB’s profit is from revaluation of assets; (3) 1MDB overpaid for some assets.
I’ll consider each in turn. Read the rest of this entry »
Time for all progressive and patriotic political leaders to come together on a common programme to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state as a result of rampant corruption, abuses of power, socio-economic injustices and the collapse of good governance
Posted by Kit in Malaysian Dream, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 July 2015
Malaysia is undergoing rapid and even lightning political developments and changes.
Issues and concerns which were never thought of by Malaysians for years or even decades have overnight become popular concerns.
This is best highlighted by the headlines in online media and foreign news media in the past few days like:
• Malaysia’s Najib Razak fights for political life amid 1MDB claims
• A broken prime minister?
• Is it ‘Game Over’ for Najib?
• Can Najib Razak Survive 1MDB Scandal
• Malaysian Leader Faces Risk of Criminal Charges Over Fund
• Najib Appears Out But The Kleptocrats May Win
• MP urges AG to prosecute Najib, if proof found
• No surprise if Najib hauled to court, says veteran journalist
• Can the Agong act to depose a sitting PM?
In the past few days, I myself had posed questions which I had never done before:
• Whether the Attorney-General can charge and prosecute the Prime Minister although the Attorney-General is clearly empowered by the Constitution to do so; and
• Whether the Prime Minister will sack the Attorney-General first, if there is any inkling of such a possibility?
It is most unfortunate that at this pivotal period of national development to ensure that Malaysia does not become a failed state, drowned in the morass of rampant corruption, abuses of power, socio-economic justices and collapse of good governance, the two top leaders in PAS are giving the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak the strongest defence and support. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib, your time is up sir, Game Over!
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 July 2015
Dzulkefly Ahmad
The Malaysian Insider
6 July 2015
1. Granted, that the damning expose by both Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Sarawak Report of the transfer of some US$700 million to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal account heralded Najib’s Waterloo, is a fait accompli and foregone.
2. Perusing the sensational exposition, one couldn’t help thinking that it is neither concocted nor a decoy personally contrived by Najib to divert media attention. Purporting it as a political sabotage, by political nemesis, doesn’t reduce its grave consequences on Najib.
3. Going by its incriminating details conducted by investigators for the Malaysian authorities as reported, Najib has truly met his Waterloo. Yes, he has finally been nuked by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a monster or more appropriately a “trojan horse” he personally helped to create to “embezzle funds” for his “do-or-die” election mission of the 13th general election in 2013. Read the rest of this entry »
Investigate 1MDB disclosures comprehensively and with integrity
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Thursday, 9 July 2015
– Steven Thiru
The Malaysian Insider
8 July 2015
The Malaysian Bar is extremely concerned over recent disclosures made by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Sarawak Report (SR) of information contained in government investigation documents allegedly revealing that funds of about US$700 million (RM2.7 billion) were transferred between government agencies, banks and companies linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), and then deposited into the personal accounts of the Prime Minister in AmIslamic Bank Berhad in March 2013.
It has also been reported that the original source of the funds is unclear and the subsequent use of the funds is unknown.
The prime minister said today, “… saya ingin menegaskan sekali lagi bahawa saya tidak pernah mengambil dana 1MDB untuk kepentingan diri sendiri” (I would like to stress again that I had never taken 1MDB’s funds for my personal interest).
However, it appears that the prime minister has not expressly denied that funds were deposited into his personal bank accounts. Read the rest of this entry »
Siapa untung jika Najib berundur?
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Mahathir, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak, Razaleigh Hamzah, Zahid on Wednesday, 8 July 2015
ANALISIS OLEH ZULKIFLI SULONG, PENGARANG ANALISIS DAN RENCANA
The Malaysian Insider
8 July 2015
Siapakah yang bakal mendapat manfaat daripada krisis dihadapi Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak sekarang?
Siapakah bakal dilantik perdana menteri sekiranya Najib terpaksa melepaskan jawatan ekoran skandal syarikat sarat hutang 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) yang sudah menjadi perhatian antarabangsa.
The Malaysian Insider cuba menyenaraikan tokoh yang mungkin mendapat manfaat sekiranya anak kepada perdana menteri kedua, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein berundur. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib has notched up another precedent, sending lawyers’ letter which is ambivalent whether it paves the way for the Prime Minister to sue or not to sue Wall Street Journal
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 8 July 2015
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has notched up another precedent, sending lawyers’ letter which is ambivalent whether it paves the way for the Prime Minister to sue or not to sue Wall Street Journal (WSJ) for publication of report that Malaysian government investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) of 1MDB’s funds deposited into Najib’s personal accounts at AmBank.
According to Malaysiakini, Najib’s lawyers, the legal firm Hafarizam Wan & Aisha Mubarak has asked Dow Jones, the owner of WSJ, to respond with 14 days “whether it is your position, as taken in the articles, that our client misappropriated nearly US$700 million from 1MDB”.
Najib’s lawyers’ letter to Dow Jones said: “You will no doubt appreciate the seriousness of the allegation made against our client in the said articles and confirmation is sought to enable us to advise our client the appropriate legal recourse he can take to seek redress in relation to the publication of these articles.”
If UMNO Supreme Council member and Deputy Agriculture Agro-based Industries Minister Datuk Tajuddin Abdul Rahman is right that WSJ never implicated Najib, but only 1MDB, such a letter should not have been sent.
However, this letter was not what Malaysians had been led to expect with the various threats of legal action against WSJ for its report and allegation, especially as conspicuously absent is any forthright demand to WSJ to apologise for the defamation of the Prime Minister and withdrawal of WSJ report concerned with the undertaking not to repeat such defamation. Read the rest of this entry »
Six options for Ministers to prove that they are a Cabinet of model Malaysian patriots and leaders and not just a coterie of self-seeking politicians who cannot put national interests above personal and/or party interests
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 8 July 2015
All eyes are on the first Cabinet meeting today after the Wall Street Journal report making unprecedented and ground-shaking allegation of embezzlement against the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak when it reported last Friday that Malaysian government investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) of 1MDB’s funds had been deposited into Najib’s personal accounts.
Today’s Cabinet meeting is a test for all the Ministers, whether they are model Malaysian patriots and leaders who will always put national interests above party and/or personal interests or whether they are just a coterie of self-seeking politicians who are not prepared to take a public and patriotic stand on the great issues of the day.
And the greatest issue of the day is undoubtedly the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal, the WSJ allegation of embezzlement and Prime Ministerial misconduct and Najib’s failure after five long days, in an information age of 24/7 communication of information, to categorically clear himself of impropriety by declaring two simple things: (I) that it is untrue that some US$700 million (RM2.6 bilion) had been deposited into his personal bank accounts; and (ii) that he has no personal bank accounts in AmBank.
Yesterday’s announcement that the special task force of the quartet of investigating agencies (Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, Royal Malaysian Police and Attorney-General’s Chambers) into 1MDB and the allegation that RM2.6 billion of 1MDB funds had been transferred into Najib’s personal accounts, had frozen six bank accounts, three of them believed to belong to the Prime Minister, has cast a completely new complexion on the biggest Prime Ministerial crisis in the nation’s history.
Is the noose which the Wall Street Journal report had thrown around Najib’s neck getting tighter? Read the rest of this entry »
Inquiry Into Malaysian Fund Also Puts Spotlight on Prime Minister
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 8 July 2015
by Austin Ramzy
New York Times
July 7, 2015
HONG KONG — Officials in Malaysia said on Tuesday that they had frozen bank accounts as part of an investigation into the country’s troubled development investment fund and accusations that hundreds of millions of dollars from the fund had been transferred to Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Government investigators have been looking into the finances of the heavily indebted 1Malaysia Development Berhad, also known as 1MDB. News reports have said that some of its funds have been routed to accounts controlled by Mr. Najib. Read the rest of this entry »
Yes, Prime Minister, you must sue!
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Media, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 8 July 2015
— P Ramakrishnan
The Malay Mail Online
July 7, 2015
JULY 7 — Mere denials do not establish one’s innocence. Evidence must be established to dispel and nail false accusations and unfair allegations.
Unfortunately, denials are the only form of defence resorted to by people who are put on the spot whenever they are accused of corruption. They fail to understand that mere denials do not clear their name or safeguard their reputation.
This is something the Prime Minister must be mindful of. So must his coterie of supporters who mindlessly come to his rescue by denying and condemning others without any solid evidence to convince Malaysians that there is no shred of truth in what was claimed. Read the rest of this entry »
Call on IGP to re-open investigations into the murder of AmBank founder Hussein Najadi in broad daylight in centre of Kuala Lumpur on 29th July 2013 to ascertain whether it had any links with 1MDB scandal
Posted by Kit in Crime, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 7 July 2015
The situation faced by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his government today is best described by the Chinese expression “草木皆兵” – which literally means “every bush and tree looks like an enemy soldier” where the Najib Government is so nervous, suspicious, insecure and panicky about its position that it is virtually “jumping at shadows”.
This is the reason for the Najib government’s foolish and myopic decision to sabotage and frustrate the holding of a meeting of progressive MPs and NGO representatives on the grave Wall Street Journal (WSJ) allegation against Najib for Prime Ministerial misconduct and the criminal offence of embezzlement, by refusing MPs the use of Bilik Taklimat and reneging on the Parliamentary administration’s earlier agreement for the use of the meeting room for the occasion.
As a result, progressive MPs and NGO representatives have to hold their meeting at the Parliament square, sitting on the ground – unheard of for the Malaysian Parliament as well as commonwealth and global Parliaments.
Why is the Najib administration so jumpy and panicky about the meeting of progressive MPs and NGO representatives on the WSJ allegation and Najib’s future that MPs have been locked out of Parliament Bilik Taklimat and forced to meet in the open at the Parliament square? What has the Najib government got to hide and to be so panicky about!
This is the fifth day of the grave WSJ allegation of Prime Ministerial misconduct in committing the criminal offence of embezzlement in its report last Friday that Malaysian investigators have found almost US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) of 1MDB’s funds deposited into Najib’s personal bank accounts, and Najib’s failure to categorically deny the WSJ allegation.
Malaysians are all asking why Najib finds it so coy or difficult to put to rest once and for all the WSJ allegation of Prime Ministerial misconduct and the grave offence of embezzlement, when all he needs to do is to categorically deny that he ever had personal accounts in his name in AmBank or that some US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) had been deposited into his bank accounts in 2013. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s Najib Razak fights for political life amid 1MDB claims
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 7 July 2015
by Michael Peel in Kuala Lumpur
Financial Times
July 6, 2015
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak faces a struggle for survival amid growing fallout from allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were channeled from a state development fund into his personal bank accounts.
Investigators of the escalating scandal at 1Malaysia Development Berhad have passed the country’s Attorney-General evidence relating to transfers totaling almost $700m shortly before the last elections.
Mr Najib has denied taking money for personal gain and has denounced the accusations as “a concerted campaign of political sabotage to topple a democratically elected Prime Minister”.
The Financial Times has not been able to independently verify the allegations. They have added to turmoil in Malaysian politics at a time when Mr Najib’s United Malays National Organisation faces a grave challenge to its near six-decade hegemony.
Analysts say the claims, reported on Friday by the Wall Street Journal and the Sarawak Report website, are potentially fatal for Mr Najib’s career. They appear to make the first direct link between the premier and the long-running scandal over how 1MDB racked up debts of more than $11bn. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia’s PM Extends Feud to Mahathir’s Son
Posted by Kit in Mahathir, Najib Razak, UMNO on Tuesday, 7 July 2015
Asia Sentinel
July 2, 2015
Sources say government is delaying funds and slowing proposals in state Mukhriz controls.
The scorched-earth war between Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his one-time mentor, former Premier Mahathir Mohamad, has extended to the northern state of Kedah, where Mahathir’s son, Mukhriz, rules as chief minister.
The federal government in Putrajaya reportedly has cut budget allocations to the state, one of the country’s poorest, and is dragging its heels on a proposal by Mukhriz to build an airport in the city of Kulim which Mukhriz deems crucial to boosting the local economy. Reportedly other economic initiatives have been blocked through the federal government’s refusal to pay full land premium for land that Mukhriz is attempting to convert to industrial uses. He is also encountering sniping from Najib forces in the state over his performance as chief minister
It was his father, Mahathir, who paved the way for Najib to become prime minister, first grooming him as defense minister, and then, in 2009 playing an instrumental role in driving his successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi from power. Anointed by Mahathir, Najib became prime minister only to lead the Barisan in 2013 to the first loss of the popular vote since 1969, although it retained its majority in parliament through gerrymandering. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysian Leader Faces Risk of Criminal Charges Over Fund
Posted by Kit in Crime, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 7 July 2015
by The New York Times,
Associated Press
July 5, 2015
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia’s prime minister is facing the risk of criminal charges over allegations that hundreds of millions of dollars were funneled from an indebted state fund to his personal bank accounts, the first time a Malaysian leader has faced criminal allegations.
The country’s attorney general confirmed late Saturday that he had received documents from an official investigation that made the link between Prime Minister Najib Razak and the investment fund 1MDB. The existence of the documents was first reported by The Wall Street Journal’s Asia edition on Friday, showing some $700 million were wired from entities linked to the fund into Najib’s accounts.
The documents sent to the attorney general pave the way for possible criminal charges.
It is one of the worst political crises for Najib, who has come under increasing criticism over his leadership.
Najib, who has denied taking any money for personal gains, said Sunday that he would consult with his lawyers to decide his next course of action on the “malicious accusations” against him. Read the rest of this entry »
-
You are currently browsing the archives for the Najib Razak category.
