Mr Najib, who attended Singapore’s National Day Parade at the Padang along with six other heads of state and heads of government on Sunday, said: “The reality is that we share your aspirations for good governance; for a strong, inclusive and sustainable economy based on sound fundamentals; and for stability, harmony and diversity”.
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Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today expressed gratitude to predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for supporting the government through thick and thin.
He also lamented that when the MACC continued its investigations and wanted to query Najib on the source of the money in his account, its officers were harassed by the police who accused them of leaking information, while those who had been outspoken were suddenly transferred.
Nga added that if the scandals linked to Najib were not solved, all Malaysians would have to pay the price.
Malaysia’s Tourism MinisteDatuk Seri Nazri Aziz has chided former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for saying that democracy is dead, claiming that Mahathir was more draconian during his tenure.
“Democracy is dead. It is dead because an elected leader chooses to subvert the institutions of Government and make them his instruments for sustaining himself.
The people are at a loss as to what to do”, he said, adding that the prospect of Najib continuing to rule the country is utterly depressing.
“There is no more democracy for anyone to undermine”.
The Wall Street Journal reported in July that investigators looking into 1MDB found that almost $700 million was deposited into Najib’s accounts.
It is calling for Mr Najib to go on leave until after investigations into the 1MDB are completed.
He recounted some of 1MDB’s alleged misdeeds, including its joint venture with PetroSaudi worldwide and its funds in the Cayman Islands, the whereabout of which he said nobody could be certain of now, saying it was unclear if the money repatriated was in units of assets or cash. But relations have long been strained between the two and Dr. Mahathir had called for Mr. Najib’s ouster even before the latest scandal.
He then noted how the Cabinet reshuffle by Najib had “effectively paralysed” PAC and stopped its work of investigating 1MDB.
Public criticism led to the police suspending its investigations against the MACC men.
Dr Mahathir said there was rumour now that another member of the task force – the Bank Negara Malaysia’s governor – was being investigated for corruption.
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Malaysia’s anti-graft commission said last week that it would ask Mr. Najib to explain a $660 million donation that was deposited into his private bank account from a Middle Eastern donor.
