Bodyguards shield Rosmah from reporters

Reporters were pushed aside and rebuked as they attempted several times to ask the elusive Rosmah Mansor questions pertaining to her alleged links with carpet man Deepak Jaikishan.

KUALA LUMPUR: From her alleged gem-stone links with carpet dealer Deepak Jaikishan to her purported hand in P Balasubramaniam’s second statutory declaration (SD), Rosmah Mansor has become juicy fodder for a public hungry for answers.

But while pressure mounted on Rosmah to respond to the incriminating allegations, the self-proclaimed First Lady of Malaysia today continued to remain mum during her public appearance, despite being pestered by reporters several times throughout the day over the issue.

A journalist from news portal Malaysiakini bore the brunt of it when he approached the premier’s wife from the sidelines while she exited the launching of the Roti 1Malaysia Charity Programme.

As he was asking his question, a bodyguard emerged from the crowd and grabbed his arm, effectively halting the reporter from pestering Rosmah further.

“Where are you from?” the male bodyguard demanded once he moved the reporter out of Rosmah’s path.

Unwilling to reveal his company’s name, the reporter, who was almost half the bodyguard’s size, simply replied that he was from “the media”.

“I just want to ask her a question,” the reporter explained, while a curious Rosmah stood by to witness the scene unfold. But the bodyguard curtly replied: “No need.”

As Rosmah walked away, a female bodyguard appeared and stood in the reporter’s way to stop him from pursuing her.

Later, as Rosmah dined with the event organisers in a restaurant, an officer from the Prime Minister’s Office interrupted FMT’s attempts to approach her table.

“It’s not nice to ask her questions now,” said the officer. “You can ask her questions during her press conferences.”

Meanwhile, a group of journalists waited patiently at the restaurant’s exit to pounce on Rosmah as she was leaving.

However, they too were foiled; officers escorting Rosmah told the ambushing reporters to “give cooperation”.

Defeated, the journalists backed off.

Mysteries surrounding Rosmah

Rosmah had remained stoically silent despite the unflattering attention she had received since her former close associate, Deepak, came out in the open.

Deepak had told reporters that Rosmah, whom he described as a “sister figure”, had asked him to help persuade Balasubramaniam to reverse his first statutory declaration implicating Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in the murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Pakatan Rakyat leaders had urged Rosmah to come forward and take legal action against Deepak to prove that his claims were baseless.

To add further damage to her credibility, PKR’s strategy chief Rafizi Ramli alleged last week that Deepak had spent RM13 million in 2009 to purchase gems for Rosmah.

But unlike Rosmah, Deepak was quick to deny the claims.

Last month, Rosmah revealed that she will be launching a 146-page biography which would reportedly answer the “false allegations” against her.

However, there was no word of when precisely the book would be released.