NAJIB THE FIRST IN LINE FOR ‘HUDUD’ CHOP-HANDS PUNISHMENT? IF HADI A SINCERE MUSLIM, HE SHOULD WARN 1MDB PLAYERS ‘ROBBING & STEALING’ ARE ISLAMIC CRIMES

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang would do better to preach the use of hudud against the actors of 1MDB than to defend the scandal-plagued fund by citing foreign intervention, Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) Youth deputy chief Faiz Fadzil says.

“Is not robbing and stealing an offence under hudud, as clearly stated in the Quran?

“I am worried that the people’s confidence in the fairness of hudud would be eroded by the PAS president’s failure to act against those in power,” Faiz said in a statement today.

He was responding to Hadi who, among others, viewed the US Department of Justice (DOJ) bid to seize US$1.7 billion in assets allegedly acquired using stolen 1MDB funds as a case of “foreign intervention”.

He added that the Marang MP’s insistence that the scandal should be left to Malaysian authorities to resolve was “naive”.

“The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report supplied to him had exposed that 1MDB paid Aabar Investments PJS Ltd (BVI), a bogus company set up to siphon 1MDB funds that resulted in the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and (the real) Aabar Investments PJS suing 1MDB and the Malaysian government.

“Despite the clear evidence, the authorities in this country, including the attorney-general, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and police, have failed to act,” he said.

Faiz stressed that the DOJ action was not a case of foreign intervention as it was a result of the laundering of 1MDB funds allegedly stolen through the US financial system, which violated that country’s laws.

Faiz (photo) said he found the statement shocking and criticised Hadi for “making use of religion” in defending wrongdoings.

He added that other countries, including Singapore, have also conducted similar actions.

“These foreign countries have only acted in the name of integrity and dignity, which our government has failed to do,” Faiz said.

The DOJ claimed at least US$4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1MDB. Swiss investigators have also provided a similar estimate.

The money, DOJ said, was used to acquire, among others, 28 pieces of jewellery for the wife of Malaysian Official 1, including a 22-carat pink diamond necklace worth US$27.3 million.

Meanwhile, Amanah Youth housing committee chief Mohd Ammar Atan said the jewellery could have been used fund the building of more than 1,000 affordable housing units.

“And that is only the value of one pink diamond necklace, excluding the US$4.5 billion sum that is suspected to have been misappropriated from 1MDB and could have been used to fund 132,000 houses.

“Unfortunately, the money, which should have been used for the interest of the people, was instead used (for jewellery) to don the body of the wife of Malaysian Official 1,” Mohd Ammar said.

– M’kini