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Thursday, June 25, 2015

NAJIB'S GRIP ON UMNO LOOSENS: Johor at risk amid warning from Prince, Mara bribery the last straw

NAJIB'S GRIP ON UMNO LOOSENS: Johor at risk amid warning from Prince, Mara bribery the last straw
KUALA LUMPUR - Scandal-torn Prime Minister Najib Razak was dealt a new blow when the deputy Johor Umno Youth chief Khairul Anwar Rahmat openly supported the Johor Crown Prince's reminder to politicians they are here to serve the people first, and not to be blindly loyal to the party line.
The Crown Prince's remark was seen by many as an indirect slap at the Najib administration, with whom he has fallen out with after a high-profile run-in with the PM himself.
"Islam does not teach us to be obsessed with our own thoughts, or with our group that we close our eyes to the views of others. Personal interests and greed, and narrow political ideologies should be put aside to achieve a blessed and prosperous nation," said Khairul in a statement on Thursday.
Khairul is also the organiser of the controversial Nothing2Hide forum, where Najib faced public humiliation and scorn after he refused to show up despite tremendous publicity ahead of the event, meant to serve as a platform for the PM to tell his side on the RM42 billion 1MDB financial scandal.
Khairul's comments are noticeably biting, using words such as 'personal interest and greed' - tags frequently used to describe the Najib administration by critics and even some foreign media.
Bet in Umno is now AGAINST Najib: Mara overshadows 1MDB
Even within Umno, many see the remarks or more specifically Khairul's boldness in making them as a further indication of Najib's loosening hold on power.
"The bet now is against Najib. Mara is the latest nail in Umno's coffin and the supreme council knows they can't continue to operate this way with scandal after scandal. I don't think guys like Muhyiddin, Shafie are going to let Najib off the hook at all," an Opposition politician told Malaysia Chronicle.
He was referring to the Mara's bribery-laced property acquisition in Melbourne which made the international headlines yesterday.
When questioned by the press, Mara chairman Annuar Musa made it clear, Najib (who is also Finance Minister) had knowledge of and gave the nod for the public trust council’s funds to be used to buy a hostel block in Melbourne at an inflated price of AUD22.5 million (RM65 million), from which AUD4.75 million (RM13.7 million) was purportedly siphoned out as kickbacks.
Although Annuar has not denied his remarks, Najib later accused the press of twisting Annuar's words. The menace behind the PM's claim was seen as a bid to shut up Annuar and to save his own political skin. However, such actions are unlikely to go down well, even with Umno's 'money-loving' warlords.
The Mara scandal overshadowed the latest development in the 1MDB corruption saga, where a former PetroSaudi executive was arrested in Thailand and accused of twisting and tampering with emails that had alleged shocking corruption by Najib, the 1MDB founder, and his shadowy friend Jho Low.
Not surprising, Najib critics believe the entire Thai arrest episode was staged and co-ordinated to free Najib from the 1MDB dirt. The anti-Najib critics point out the timing of the arrest coincided with Najib's promise to Umno division chiefs he would resolve 1MDB's problems and clear his name within a reported 2 to 6 months.
The Johor factor Umno cannot ignore
As for Khairul Anwar, who was blamed by Najib camp for allowing former premier Mahathir Mohamad to attend the 'Nothing2Hide' forum, this is the first time he has said anything about the Johor prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim since the fiasco.
Apart from Mahathir, who was forced down from the stage after mentioning Jho Low's name, Tunku Ismail had also blasted Najib for chickening out of the much-heralded event held in early June.
"How can we have ‘Nothing2Hide’ dialogue with someone who wants to hide everything? Of course he will not show up," said Tunku Ismail.
And just a day ago, Tunku Ismail - who was warned by Najib's minister he would get 'whacked' if he continued to 'interfere' in political matters - took another pot-shot.
"Let us recognise that we do not serve an ideology of a political party; we serve the people," the prince wrote in a Facebook posting.
Johor is Malaysia's southern state and a key bastion of Umno power. It is a state that the ruling party cannot afford to lose in the coming general election. Najib's deputy Muhyiddin Yassin hails from Johor.
Speculation has been rife that Muhyiddin, who has asked for the 'entire board' of 1MDB to be sacked and the police called in to investigate its books, may be dropped as Deputy Prime Minister in a post-Raya Cabinet reshuffle. - Malaysia Chronicle

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