Last week, prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir said in a speech while he was in Japan, that it isn’t easy to arrest former prime minister Najib Razak, as evidence is still being gathered in order to build a strong case against him. He said that they need to collect the kind of evidence that will stand up in court, and if they fail to do so, then Najib might win.
“Just imagine what would happen if Najib wins a court trial and he is found not guilty… then all the promises that we made, the bad things that we say about him will be questioned by the people who voted us in,” he said.
However, recently Dr Mahathir claimed that enough evidence has been gathered by the government to prosecute Najib and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor for corruption.
He said that Pakatan Harapan (PH) is not “seeking revenge” but that it is “just the application of the rule of law”, as reported by the Malay Mail.
“It is obvious that he has stolen money,” he said in an interview with US paper The New York Times (NYT).
Dr Mahathir admitted that trying to fix a corrupt political machine is quite a task, besides working with at least six countries that are also investigating the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal.
“We have asked so many people to resign we are left with a skeleton,” he said.
After Pakatan Harapan won the government in the 14th general elections, former Attorney General (AG), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief, Bank Negara governor, Chief Justice and Court of Appeal president have resigned from their jobs.
However, Dr Mahathir blamed Najib for the country’s problems and refused to acknowledge the systemic faults in Malaysia’s political system.
“All have been raped by the previous government. They have taken money. Now they have lost the money,” he said.
Finance Minister, Lim Guan Eng said, “They were just robbing the country blind. I’m having nightmares practically every day, wondering what land mines will I tread on the following day,” and added that if PH had not won, Malaysia “would have become a basket case”, reported Free Malaysia Today.
A few weeks ago, Najib and his family’s residences were raided where RM114 million in cash and more than 400 luxury handbags were seized by the police. And just last week, AG Tommy Thomas said that the AG’s Chambers had received the investigation papers on 1MDB from the MACC.
Anti-graft authorities recently recorded statements from Najib and Rosmah, who have been barred from travelling overseas due to the ongoing 1MDB investigation that is being conducted on them.
Whatever happens, we only hope that the rule of law will be applied where necessary and that action will be taken against those who are corrupted.
Also read: Jho Low Tries to Seek Immunity from Mahathir As He Is No Longer Protected by Najib