Opposition demands emergency debate on Prime Minister after graft allegations

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KUALA LUMPUR: DAP and PKR demanded an emergency sitting of parliament to discuss Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s future as tensions mounted over a report that linked him to probes into alleged corruption involving state fund 1MDB.

A Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report published on Friday said that investigators had traced nearly US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) to bank accounts they believed belonged to the prime minister.

Reuters could not independently verify the report. Najib denied taking any money from the debt-laden state fund or any other entity for personal gain.

However, the pressure was back on him on Saturday after Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said he had received documents from a task force investigating 1MDB that were ‘connected to allegations’ that money was transferred into Najib’s account.

“With the attorney-general’s confirmation, the WSJ allegation against Najib has assumed an even more serious character and importance, sparking a political and government crisis of the first magnitude never seen in Malaysia’s 58-year history,” Lim Kit Siang, the opposition Democratic Action Party’s (DAP) parliamentary leader, said in a statement.

Members of United Malays National Organisation (Umno) have closed ranks behind the prime minister, who had already been on a back foot over the alleged mismanagement of 1MDB and his handling of the economy.

However, the DAP and PKR sought to stoke the furore, urging the speaker of parliament’s lower house to call an emergency sitting on Tuesday. DAP lawmaker Charles Santiago said he and 72 others, including representatives of political parties and non-governmental organisations, had also lodged a police report.

“We have asked that the police investigate the WSJ’s assertion that billions were deposited in Najib’s personal account and take necessary actions,” he said. — Reuters