French prosecutors: Who are Major Rahim and Rahim Saad?

Wong Choon Mei, Malaysia Chronicle

In the ongoing French probe for possible corruption in Prime Minister Najib Razak’s acquisition of two Scorpene submarines, two new Malaysian personalities have emerged in the complex tale that offers a glimpse into the murky and cut-throat world of international arms wheeling and dealing.

Malaysian private investigator P Balasubramaniam, who spent hours huddled with a French investigating team team on Monday, mentions the two names - a Major Rahim and an Abdul Rahim Saad – in the press statement he released late on Wednesday.

“Bala said these were two names the prosecutors had brought up. He has no idea who they are,” Bala’s lawyer Americk Sidhu told Malaysia Chronicle in response to an email request for clarification.

Glaring Malaysian inertia

Who are these two men? Were they part of the ministry of defense? Should not the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission pick up the thread and begin an embarrassingly long-overdue probe at their end?

Indeed, the inaction shown the Malaysian Prime Minister, the anti-graft commission that he directly oversees, and the police has been glaring especially when compared with the seriousness shown by their French counterparts in the case.

A floodgate has been opened, with both national and international curiosity exacerbated by the Malaysian inertia. The slew of questions remain stubbornly and defiantly unanswered despite the swell of public unhappiness. Why is there such a lack of will to investigate, why spurn the offer of help from Bala when he may possess information that could help fit together at least 80 percent of the jigsaw puzzle?

But pundits say this is the way of the Malaysian system and because endemic corruption and abuse of power have been bred through the decades, they now prevail as a matter of right in the Southeast Asian country.

They also say the hands of the Malaysian authorities may be tied, even if that is not a good excuse. The MACC reports directly to Najib, so does the Attorney-General. Whilst, the police report to his cousin, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.

Toll on political power

As a central figure in both the submarines-corruption-probe and the Altantuya Shaariibuu-murder-case, Najib may be fighting to keep his dirty laundry from being washed in public. But the longer he tries to suppress the truth or to protect his family and friends, the bigger the hit will be to his already-waning political power.

Implicated in the complex tale is also his wife Rosmah Mansor, his friend Razak Baginda whose firm Perimekar was accused of being the beneficiary of a 114 million euros (RM570 million) kickback from DCNS. Even younger his brother Nazim Razak has been dragged into the case for allegedly intimidating Bala and offering him a RM5 million bribe to buy his silence.

“In the past, the excuses offered by the Malaysian side are that Bala may not be a credible witness. The things that he says are just too sensational and he is a stooge for the opposition politicians. But if that is so, then it is up to the MACC to check and expose him for a fraud,” PKR strategic director Tian Chua toldMalaysia Chronicle.

“But MACC doesn’t do that, they don’t probe at all. Now the French financial police have taken up the case, they have been professional in calling Bala to make sure that they have the best chance of solving the case. I understand they have mentioned two new names. I call on the MACC to immediately check this new lead. I would remind them this case involves taxpayers money, the MACC does not have the right to just ignore.”