Students slapped with fines over protest at 1MDB talk

All five students who displayed protest placards at a 1MDB town hall meeting organised by the Special Affairs Department (Jasa) at Universiti Malaya last year, have been slapped with fines.

The last of the case was disposed of yesterday, with Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) imposing a RM200 fine on its student Ariffin Amin, coupled with a stern warning for the stunt on Oct 11 last year.  

Four other students - Ho Chi Yang, Tan Jia You, Lau Li Yang and Chua Hun Ti - all from Universiti Malaya, were also found guilty on Tuesday by the varsity's disciplinary board.

They were issued a stern warning. Lau was also fined RM600, Ho and Chua were fined RM300 and Tan was fined RM150.

The quartet were committee members of University of Malaya Association of New Youth (Umany).

Meanwhile, DAP Youth varsity affairs director Leong Yu Sheng criticised the punishment.

Leong claimed the punishment was to protect Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and 1MDB at the expense of academic freedom.

"DAP Youth urge the government to stop oppressing and constraining students for political purposes.

"The government, as well as universities, should respect the freedom of speech and assembly as guaranteed by the federal constitution," he said in a statement.

The town hall last year was an attempt by the government to explain the controversies surrounding troubled sovereign wealth fund 1MDB to university students.

At its peak, 1MDB had up to RM50 billion in debt and the fund is now in the process of being wound up.

The US and Swiss authorities believe at least US$4 billion of 1MDB's funds had been misappropriated.

The US Department of Justice claimed that US$731 million of this money went to one "Malaysian Official 1", which Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Abdul Rahman Dahlan confirmed was the prime minister.

Investigators from at least half a dozen of countries are probing the matter as the funds were laundered through their financial system.

Najib had denied wrongdoing or taking public funds for personal gain.

He claimed that the multi-billion ringgit deposits in his personal bank accounts were a "donation" from a member of the Saudi Arabia royal family.- Mkini