Source from: http://themiddleground.sg/
by Anna Fernandez
Confused about what’s going on in Malaysia? To put it simply, it’s about allegations that money amounting to some US$700 million from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB, has made its complicated way into Prime Minister Najib Razak’s personal bank accounts. The Wall Street Journal cited leaked documents from an on-going investigation. There’s plenty of sniping going on, not just from former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad but also, eeeks(!), from Mr Najib’s own ministers, including his deputy, Mr Muhyiddin Yassin.
Mr Najib has been cleaning house, sacking, promoting and replacing people involved in the investigation or who have been defying him openly.
1. Deny, deny, deny
PM Najib fingered his famous predecessor Dr Mahatir Mohamad as the likely source of allegations of corruption against him.
“Let me be very clear: I have never taken funds for personal gain as alleged by my political opponents – whether from 1MDB, SRC International or other entities, as these companies have confirmed,” Mr Najib wrote on his Facebook page and on Twitter. “At no point have those making these allegations offered any evidence. All we have heard is that these allegations are based on leaked documents and unnamed investigators,” he added.
However, in a video that has been making its rounds on the Internet, former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin was heard saying that the Prime Minister admitted that US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) was transferred into his accounts.
2. Tell people the head investigator is sick
Sources close to the government mentioned on July 28 that Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail was not terminated from office as Attorney-General (AG) but had declined a renewal offer as he suffers from kidney failure and“undergoes dialysis three times a week”. The Malaysian Bar Council and several opposition lawmakers, have suggested that Mr Gani’s dismissal was unconstitutional, citing Clause (6) of Article 145 of the Federal Constitution. Article 145(6) reads in full: “The person holding the office of Attorney General immediately prior to the coming into operation of this Article shall continue to hold the office on terms and conditions not less favourable than those applicable to him immediately before such coming into operation and shall not be removed from office except on the like grounds and in the like manner as a judge of the Federal Court”.
3. Promote people to a position of powerlessness
Four Members of Parliament sitting on the bipartisan Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which has been involved in an on-going probe into 1MDB, were made ministers or deputies in a cabinet reshuffle on July 28. PAC Chairman Nur Jazlan Mohamed was also made Deputy Home Minister. The reshuffle in turn convenientlydisqualified them from sitting on the committee. Newly-appointed Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said the appointment of three new PAC members will take place in October.
4. Nod knowingly at your deputy
PM Najib sacked DPM Muhyiddin Yassin in great style. He did it with a mere nod.
Mr Muhyiddin said: “I asked him ‘do you have anything to say to me?’ He kept quiet. I asked him again: ‘Is it about the Cabinet reshuffle, and he nodded.”
He said he asked him again: “Am I not in the list of the new Cabinet?”
“He nodded again.”
Mr Najib appointed Mr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to take the place of his deputy. Four other ministers (Messrs Mohd Shafie Apdal, Hasan Malek, G. Palanivel and Ewon Ebin) were also given the boot but we don’t know if this was with a nod.
5. Demand confirmation
PM Najib’s legal team from Hafarizam Wan & Aisha Mubarak sent an email to Dow Jones, the owner of Wall Street Journal (WSJ), requesting confirmation of whether the publication stood by reports that US$700 million (S$950 million) belonging to 1MDB was deposited into his private bank accounts. He gave WSJ 14 days to respond. On July 24, Dow Jones & Company told Mr Najib Razak’s lawyers that there was no need for them to ask if WSJ had intended to accuse the Malaysian prime minister of misappropriating funds as the reports and articles “speak for themselves”.
6. Use the law against your publications
Malaysian authorities blocked access to website, Sarawak Report, which has been publishing reports and documents critical of PM Najib and 1MDB. The website is no longer accessible in Malaysia. Also, Malaysia’s Home Ministry suspended the publishing permits of The Edge Weekly and The Edge Financial Daily for three months beginning July 27, over their coverage of 1MDB.
7. Allege political sabotage
PM Najib accused Dr Mahathir, who was Malaysia’s prime minister for 22 years, of conspiring with international media to topple his government. The PM’s office said in a Facebook post on July 3 that the allegations against Mr Najib were part of a “continuation of political sabotage”.
Also, Datuk Seri Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin, an Umno Supreme Council member suggested on July 7 that allegations of corruption against the Prime Minister was an attempt to weaken Malaysia’s Muslim community. “Now they are using foreign media to attack and this situation is up to us to be on which side,” he said at a Ramadan event.
8. Kick an old man when he’s out
On June 18, Malaysia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dato’ Sri Anifah Aman hit back at the “reckless and baseless personal smears” levelled by former Dr Mahathir against Mr Najib Razak in an open letter to the New York Times. “It is a measure of the reforms put in place under Prime Minister Najib’s administration that Dr Mahathir has the freedom to be so vocally critical of the party and government he once led. But Dr Mahathir is abusing that freedom, and his privileged standing as a former Prime Minister, to indulge in reckless and baseless personal smears against Prime Minister Najib and his family,” he wrote.
9. Blame leaks on a Swiss guy
A former PetroSaudi employee, Mr Xavier Andre Justo, was alleged to have been part of the network which leaked information to a website that alleged the Malaysian government misappropriated state funds. Mr Justo, who is in custody and expected to be charged with blackmailing PetroSaudi, identified about 10 people who bought documents from him to use to attack Mr Najib.
10. Make sure you are Prime Minister
Featured image from Flickr user apec2013.
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