Malaysia Says Alleged Millions in Najib Accounts From Donors
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said its investigations found that 2.6 billion ringgit ($675 million) that allegedly ended up in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s personal accounts were donations and not from a debt-ridden state investment company.
The agency has completed its probe of the premier’s accounts and sent the results to the attorney general, it said in an e-mailed statement Monday. The probe was done in a free, transparent and professional manner, it said, without indicating where the donations came from or why millions of dollars in such funds would be deposited in Najib’s personal bank accounts.
“From a legal point, there is nothing wrong now for Najib,” said Wan Saiful Wan Jan, head of the Kuala Lumpur-based Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs. “But he has lost the moral authority to speak about governance.”
The Wall Street Journal reported on July 3 that $700 million may have moved through government agencies and state-linked companies to accounts bearing Najib’s name. The premier has denied taking money for personal gain and has described the furor as part of a campaign to remove him from office.
Facing his biggest crisis in six years in power, Najib last week removed his deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who had called for answers on the 1Malaysia Development Bhd. imbroglio including its investment decisions. The government said it also was replacing attorney general Abdul Gani Patail for health reasons, with former Federal Court judge Mohamed Apandi Ali taking the role.
Overlapping Probes
The attorney general’s office is on the task force investigating the money trail claims against Najib. 1MDB is the subject of overlapping probes by agencies including the central bank and the police. Najib’s office said it wasn’t immediately commenting on the anti-corruption commission’s statement Monday.
Some ministers came out in support of Najib after the MACC statement. Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said Najib didn’t commit a crime by accepting donations on behalf of their United Malays National Organisation party, the Malaysiakini website reported. Communications Minister Salleh Said Keruak said critics of 1MDB can’t be satisfied.
“Should they not be happy that the money was not stolen from 1MDB as alleged?” Salleh wrote on his blog. “That is what they demanded to know and that was what MACC confirmed.”
Najib enjoys support among UMNO division chiefs as well as the party rank and file for his populist policies. He’s built a support network since coming to power and won over members with a variety of pro-Malay policies in the past 18 months.
Silent UMNO
Still, there may be critics. Mohamed Khaled Nordin, chief minister of the state of Johor, said UMNO members should speak up when the party is used to serve the rights of a few.
“UMNO can not just be silent when the party can no longer give priority to the struggle of the Malays but is used to defend certain groups in the name of loyalty to the party or leader to obey party discipline,” Khaled said, without naming the groups or leader.
Controversy over 1MDB’s finances has dogged Najib for months, though an initial audit report didn’t reveal any suspicious activity. Najib chairs the advisory board of 1MDB and has resisted calls from ex-premier Mahathir Mohamad to step down over the fund’s performance as it amassed about 42 billion ringgit of debt in less than five years.
The task force investigating 1MDB comprises the central bank, police, the anti-corruption commission and attorney general’s office. 1MDB has said reports that it funneled funds to Najib’s accounts are untrue.
Hearings Delayed
Najib’s new cabinet formed last week includes four members of parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, one of the groups investigating 1MDB. The appointees will need to step down from the group and the probe will be halted until new members can be named in October when Parliament reconvenes, according to its chairman Nur Jazlan Mohamed, who was named deputy home minister.
1MDB said Monday it was told its hearings for August and September in front of the committee will be postponed to a date that will be determined later. The remaining members of the committee said Tuesday they may release a brief report on the inquiry into 1MDB.
The anti-corruption agency said it’s still continuing investigations into SRC International Sdn., a company controlled by the finance ministry, in relation to 4 billion ringgit of funds. The police are probing 1MDB, while the central bank’s investigations are related to financial procedures, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said without elaborating.