WHY HIDE IF YOU ARE CLEAN? PKR leaders join Ku Li's call to Najib to DECLARE ASSETS

KUALA LUMPUR - Opposition leaders joined the call by Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh to Prime Minister Najib Razak to set an example and declare all his assets if he was serious about tooting corruption, cronyism and nepotism.

"Bravo for the brave suggestion from Tengku Razaleigh. It is the obvious and logical step to take if Najib really wants to prove he does not possess the billions that he and Rosmah are said to have collected along the way. The stories that have gone round town about their wealth accumulation over the past 5 years are simply astounding. Najib should therefore seize this opportunity to clear his name and make the Cabinet do the same," MP for Wangsa Maju Tan Kee Kwong told Malaysia Chronicle.

No stronger signal in the fight against corruption

Kee Kwong's views were echoed by his colleague, Chua Jui Meng, the PKR vice president and Johor chief.

"No signal can be stronger coming from Najib, simply because he is the PM. So what he does counts. If he is dirty, then all the rest in Umno-BN will also be tainted. Why should they be good when the boss is not? So we hope that Najib will take up Ku Li's challenge and not bury his head in the sand especially when his children are now in the news with their business deals. Don't let people say that now the general election is over, he and Umno have gone back to their bad ways and it is business as usual, free-for-all corruption in the country," Jui Meng told Malaysia Chronicle.

Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh or Ku Li had asked Najib to lead the way for all politicians, both past and present, to declare their assets, including those of trustees and nominees. Both men come from the Umno party, which has ruled Malaysia since 1957.

"Let's be honest; the pilfering and wastage of natural resources is intolerable. It is time to face reality, the rakyat are fed up of corruption, cronyism and nepotism."Ku Li was reported as saying at an economic roundtable organized by the Institute of Strategic and International Studies on Thursday.

"All ministers, including past prime ministers, must make a declaration of their assets along with those who have been named as trustees and nominees."

Najib will bury his head in the sand?

However, Najib is unlikely to live up to the challenge and is bound to gloss over it with some excuse or other, said his critics, who also pointed at previous instances where Najib had deliberately swept the issue of declaring his assets under the carpet.

Ku Li warned that to keep putting off reform would only make it easier for the Opposition to gain the upper hand at the next general election, which must be held latest by 2018.

In the recently-concluded 13th general election, Najib's Umno-BN coalition ceded a further 7 seats at the federal Parliament to Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim's Pakatan Rakyat. Umno-BN won only 133 out of the 222 seats that were up for grabs.

"There is nothing to prevent a change of government; there is massive unemployment involving fresh graduates and also high cost of living in the urban areas," said Ku Li.

MORE TO COME

Malaysia Chronicle