Rafizi warned that the situation now is similar to how it was during the early days of Low and 1MDB.
Former PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli has cautioned Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim that his association with former aide Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak could expose the government to the same pitfalls that led to the 1MDB scandal.
Speaking on KiniTV’s Explain Sikit, Kini! podcast, the Pandan MP drew parallels with fugitive financier Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, whose role in 1MDB helped bring down Najib Abdul Razak’s administration. Najib is now serving a prison sentence for corruption.
“After two or three years, if this government is not careful, it could fall into the same trap as previous ones, where hidden hands unaccountable to the public wield influence,” Rafizi said. “Malaysia has been burned once by the Low saga; we cannot afford even a fraction of that again.”
Rafizi vowed to continue probing, stressing that consistent chatter from multiple sources could not be dismissed. “If something later proves true, Anwar and PKR will have to bear the cost, and that would be a pity for a party claiming to stand for reform.”
He said Farhash’s influence, despite holding no senior party post, raised accountability concerns and risked undermining elected leaders. Rafizi recounted that Farhash only emerged after PKR entered government in 2018, and by 2019 had become increasingly influential.
According to Rafizi, the issue was raised during the 2022 party election, when Anwar gave the impression that Farhash would step back from politics after failing to secure a party position. However, Rafizi said talk of his influence resurfaced once Anwar became prime minister.
“If appointments are consistently linked to Farhash, it does not bode well. If he were a vice-president or deputy president, he would be answerable to the public. But as an unelected figure, his alleged role feeds unease,” he said.
Farhash has recently been linked to two controversies. In July, MalaysiaNow reported he had received authorisation to prospect for minerals in a Sabah forest reserve. He denied the report, filed a police complaint, and launched a defamation suit. The MACC later cleared him, confirming no exploration licence was issued to his company.
Farhash’s name also surfaced in a syringe attack on Rafizi’s son in Putrajaya, which Rafizi suggested could be linked to whistleblower information implicating him. Farhash called the allegation “crazy” and denied involvement.