Seeking justice or vendetta?

The truth, as bitter as it is, remains that carpet trader Deepak is livid at how ‘ungrateful’ both Najib and Rosmah have been to him.

COMMENT

A wealthy carpet trader has after four years decided to “clear his conscience” and hopes the real perpetrator/s behind the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu will not go unpunished.

Deepak Jaikishan, whose carpets once adorned the residence of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, is now crying foul, implicating the premier in the Mongolian interpreter’s death.

In 2008, Deepak was said to have paid private investigator P Balasubramaniam (Bala) RM5 million for the latter to retract his first statutory declaration which directly linked Najib to Altantuya’s death.

But on Nov 12, 2009, Bala via YouTube disclaimed the second SD, saying he was paid by Deepak to withdraw the first SD. Deepak, meanwhile, said he did so at the behest of a “female friend” who later turned out to be Rosmah Mansor.

The “I want to clear my conscience drama” came about after Deepak lost millions in government contracts. He had a 20-year contract to build 16 1Malaysia Mara hostels abroad worth RM2 billion but the deal was suspended.

Deepak claimed subsequent to his involvement in 2008, he has been pressured by the “powers that be” to be silent. And between 2010 and 2011, his home and his offices had been raided by various agencies sent by the government to intimidate and silence him.

Deepak is now considering legal action against the government, including Najib.

The “Deepak-Rosmah/Najib” drama unfolded after whistleblower Raja Petra Kamarudin revived the matter in April 2011.

Now Deepak decided to reveal all. But then was it really a case of wanting to “clear his conscience and seek justice for Altantuya” or is it all about vendetta for the billions lost in government contracts?

For Deepak’s sake, one hopes it is all about giving conscience a priority. Nevertheless, this businessman is angry for having been taken for granted by both Najib and Rosmah, the latter whom Deepak regarded as his “elder sister”.

What’s Deepak up to, really?

It is unfortunate that Deepak got himself entangled with the “crooks”, but then did he not know from day one just whom he was dealing with? Was Deepak that naïve that he had no idea of the machinations of Rosmah and Najib?

Where was Deepak’s conscience when he “rewarded” Bala with RM5 million to tell a lie and save both Najib’s skin and his political career?

The truth, as bitter as it is, remains that Deepak is livid at how “ungrateful” both Najib and Rosmah have been to him, especially after he agreed to help the couple escape blame for Altantuya’s gruesome murder in the jungle of Puncak Alam, Shah Alam, in October 2006.

Two members of an elite police unit were later convicted and sentenced to death for the crime. What was Deepak thinking when Rosmah asked him to look for Bala the very day when the PI’s SD was made public?

Is it wrong to deduce that Deepak willingly jumped in to help when everyone else Rosmah contacted turned her down because he was hoping for a “quid pro quo”?

He played accomplice to crooks and suffered in the process. What would be unacceptable is for Deepak to use “conscience” as an excuse to seek revenge against Rosmah and Najib.

The fact is that Deepak’s ties with Rosmah turned sour following a land dispute involving him and Umno senator Raja Roopiah Abdullah. Deepak claimed that his company, Asta Canggih Sdn Bhd, was the nominee company or third party vehicle in the acquisition of 223 acres of land after he struck an agreement with Raja Roopiah.

Under the agreement, he was supposed to get all but 23 acres of the land, which would be returned to Raja Roopiah. Deepak claimed that Najib had bypassed the Cabinet in deciding to pull back the land from him.

Hoping for a miracle?

The dirt uncovered by Deepak is not shocking, not when Najib’s reputation precedes him. Besides the Altantuya murder, the country’s sixth prime minister is implicated in kickbacks worth millions through the purchase of the Scorpene submarines when he served as defence minister a decade ago.

Still, if Deepak is hoping for miracles, he may just end up disappointed, knowing fully well the travesty of justice that continues to plague the nation.

Deepak’s lament that the MACC is more interested in covering up the secret dealings following the 2006 murder of Altantuya is also nothing out of the ordinary, going by the agency’s battered image as one that has no “power” to fight for the truth.

While MACC had recorded Deepak’s statement over his role, it left matters at that, giving the impression of a cover-up. However, the opposition DAP said it would lodge a police report over Deepak’s revelation that Najib and Rosmah were involved in Altantuya’s murder.

DAP chairman Karpal Singh said while it was wrong for Deepak to hide the truth for the past two years, it was more important that Altantuya’s murderer be brought to justice. Indeed, it is justice and not vindictiveness that should truly be Deepak’s concern.

Jeswan Kaur is a freelance writer and a FMT columnist.