Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has reiterated his call to the people not to speculate on the US Department of Justice’s court filings related to 1MDB that were made last week.
Najib said the government takes the department’s allegations seriously.
In the meantime, he said, the people should not get carried away and allow due process to take its course.
“Sooner or later, we will know the truth. In the meantime, let’s not get too carried away in this matter.
“We should allow the process to proceed using the appropriate legal processes. That is the government’s stance, and we will give full cooperation,” Najib told some 1,000 would-be pilgrims at the Tunku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque in Putrajaya this afternoon.
The court filings made last Wednesday detail the alleged money trail of the funds supposedly embezzled from 1MDB and went through the US financial system.
It seeks the forfeiture of more than US$1 billion in assets that are said to have been purchased using the proceeds from the embezzlement, although Malaysian attorney-general Mohd Apandi Ali maintains that there is no evidence of embezzlement from any investigation into 1MDB.
The US Department of Justice’s court filings have implicated several people, including three unnamed 1MDB officers, Penang-born tycoon Low Taek Jho and Najib’s step-son Riza Aziz.
Also implicated is a certain ‘Malaysian Official 1’, whose identity is widely speculated to be Najib, based on the filing’s description of Malaysian Official 1’s position, familial relations with Riza and alleged involvement in the 1MDB scandal.
The Malaysian Official 1 is alleged to have been on the receiving end of US$731 million in 1MDB funds.
Meanwhile, Najib said those named in the court filings must clear their names.
“Whoever is named in (those filings) should take responsibility and clear their names, and ensure that the people’s money are not abused. That is the principle,” he said.
Riza had claimed that the US$94 million that he received was a personal gift.
Apandi said Najib was not named in the filings, and had previously exonerated him of wrongdoing in relation to mysterious fund transfers into the prime minister’s personal bank account. - Mkini
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