Watchdog group Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) says the country is “dangerously close” to becoming a failed state after Tuesday’s surprise Cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Najib Razak, which it says jeopardised the ongoing probes into alleged criminality within sovereign development fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
TI-M president Akhbar Satar said the continuity of the probes into 1MDB has been disrupted by Najib’s changes to his administration, which involved the removal of federal ministers perceived to have been critical of the government’s handling of the 1MDB case, and the termination of Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail.
Akhbar asserted that Najib had previously pledged in April to make public the findings of the Auditor-General’s audit of 1MDB’s operations, and that Putrajaya would not tolarate “any abuse of power in 1MDB”.
“What has happened to date is directly opposite to the PM’s declaration – will the people now know or it is only for certain persons’ own consumption and filed in the cupboard?” he said in a statement today.
Tuesday’s Cabinet reshuffle saw the removal of Muhyiddin Yassin from the posts of Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister, after he had made several statements criticising Najib’s handling of 1MDB and the PM’s lack of transparency on the matter, even amongst members of the Cabinet.
The reshuffle also roped in four members of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), including its chairperson Nur Jazlan Mohamed, resulting in the committee suspending its investigations into 1MDB while its roster is refilled with new members.
Abdul Gani was also terminated for health reasons amidst his participation in Putrajaya’s Special Task Force, which was assigned to also investigate 1MDB’s operations. The task force is comprised of the Attorney-General’s Chambers, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM), and Bank Negara.
The Edge financial newsportal also had the publishing permits for its daily and weekly print editions suspended for three months by the Home Ministry, after a series of investigative reports uncovering alleged wrongdoing surrounding 1MDB.
The Home Ministry is still under the purview of newly-appointed Deputy Prime Minister Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
Akhbar said the Malaysian public cannot be blamed for getting a negative impression of the situation, with so many upheavals taking place in such a short period of time.
“Given the snail pace of the investigations and halting of PAC activities coupled with the sackings on 29 July, how will intelligent Malaysians view the whole episode?
“Surely they will think it is clearly a concerted effort to stop the probe into 1MDB in its tracks,” he said, as quoted by The Malayu Mail Online.
