A Kadir Jasin, the spokesperson for the Council of Eminent Persons, believes former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak may be arrested when he gives his statement to the MACC on Tuesday.
Kadir said this was based on precedence, citing the arrest of Felda chairperson Mohd Isa Abdul Samad when giving his statement to the commission over alleged graft in Felda Investment Corporation.
“I think this Tuesday, Najib will have to go to MACC to give his statement in relation to an earlier case.
Wong Huey Teng/Malaysiakini
“The chances are that he will give his statement and then be arrested. He will be taken to court for remand and he will be clothed in the famous MACC orange t-shirt.
“That was what happened to his good friend Isa. Remember he was asked to go to MACC and he was arrested, taken to court, remanded and wore the orange MACC t-shirt,” he told Malaysiakini.
Kadir said anyone could make the conclusion that the 1MDB matter is about to be taken to the Malaysian courts.
He said this was because the investigation had already been conducted in the past, but it was suppressed by Najib while he was in power.
“The problem is not so much of the investigations. The investigations have been carried out by so many authorities and they have found out so many things that may implicate Najib.
“But every time they found something new and incriminating, he sacked all of them and put in new people,” he said.
He added that the replacements survived only by toeing the line and not pursuing the 1MDB matter.
“Now that Najib cannot give instructions any more, you see his house and other hideouts were raided. So, first things first, 1MDB is a huge global scandal.
“Some jurisdictions have already proven that money had been stolen from 1MDB. They have even sent people to jail and close down banks.
“What other proof do we really need to suggest that there is crime related to 1MDB?” he said.
Kadir said the effort now is the uncover the secrets and evidence that have been hidden from the public by “consorting officials.”
The cash discovered in Najib’s home and properties linked to him does not reflect well on his former role as finance minister, said Kadir.
“If it is true that millions of dollars in cash were kept at home, then I have to say that Najib was a very bad finance minister.”
Kadir was referring to the series of police raids on Najib’s home and other properties in relation to the 1MDB matter.
“Cash that is kept at home does not generate income, and it doesn’t help the economy.
“He should have put the money into circulation by putting it in the bank,” he said.
The Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department has over the past week raided several locations, including Najib’s residence in Taman Duta.
There, police seized boxes of handbags, clothing and gifts.
Police also raided three Najib-linked condominium units in Pavilion Residences, Bukit Bintang, seizing 72 bags of cash, jewellery and other valuables, as well as 284 boxes of designer handbags.
Kadir said Najib must be from a very rich family to have that kind of money.
“Najib has to come from a very, very wealthy family, probably as wealthy as some of the billionaires in the country, with so much cash at home,” he said.
Najib, through the prime minister’s office, while he was in power, had in 2015 claimed his wealth came from “inheritance.”
However, Najib’s brothers later refuted the claim.
Najib served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018 and was also the finance minister during the same period.
He led BN to its first defeat since independence, bringing an end to the coalition’s six-decade grip on power.
The defeat came amid the rising cost of living and the 1MDB scandal, which the new Pakatan Harapan government under Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has vowed to address. – Malaysiakini