Dodging allegations of corruption at home, international agencies are now probing 1MDB for fraud, and a growing number are tired of Najib Razak's "mafia-like" rule.
PETALING JAYA: International agencies probing 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) for the misappropriation of funds, has left Prime Minister Najib Razak in a “precarious” position, said the International Business Times.
In an article entitled, “Malaysian 1MDB scandal: Najib Razak the suave strongman of South East Asia”, Harriet Sinclair traced Najib’s political history, noting that despite having no experience in politics, he was thrust into the spotlight at just 23 years old, ascending through the ranks to eventually become the prime minister of the country.
However Najib’s move to set-up the now controversial 1MDB, has become the main reason why critics like former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad want him out.
“Malaysia’s prime minister continues to face an uphill battle as allegations that he funnelled $700m (RM2.6 billion) from a state-owned fund into his personal accounts have led to fissures within the Umno party,” Sinclair wrote, adding that 1MDB tumbled into astounding debt just five years after its inception.
“Since the 1MBD fund missing payments to banks and subsequently being investigated, Najib’s position has become increasingly unstable,” she said, made worse by the RM2.6 billion scandal exposed by The Wall Street Journal and that Najib has claimed was “political sabotage.”
She said, the electorate was at first “optimistic” when he became PM and announced his intention to focus on the economy and help the poverty-stricken through BR1M handouts.
“However, Najib’s seemingly positive and human-focused start to his tenure as prime minister, which included lifting bans on two newspapers and freeing 13 prisoners, was short-lived.”
Sinclar singled out the “mafia-like” control Najib’s government exerted on its critics – political opponents and media – and his tightening of draconian laws that Human Rights Watch has described as “criminalisation of peaceful expression” in Malaysia.
“He is also a loathed figure by many members of the opposition alliance, whose leader Anwar Ibrahim is currently in prison on sodomy charges that he says are ‘politically-motivated’,” Sinclair wrote, adding that just last year, media outlets began describing Najib as “fighting for high political life.”
“Indeed, whether his own party will retain Najib as leader in the run-up to the 2018 general election is yet to be seen, but given that international agencies including the UK’s serious fraud office are now weighing in on the financial scandal (of 1MDB), his position remains precarious.”
-FMT NEWS-
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