WHAT HAPPENED TO NAJIB ON THE NIGHT OF MAY 9? DID HE TRY TO DECLARE EMERGENCY RULE, DID NSC MEMBERS REBUFF HIM – WHY IS HE SO ADAMANT TO KEEP THE CONTENTS OF HIS CONVERSATION WITH ANWAR STRICTLY ‘PRIVATE’

Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak has denied calling for a National Security Council (NSC) meeting on the night of May 9 when it became evident BN lost the 14th general election.

“I am a democrat. I believe in the will of the people. They accused me of calling for an NSC meeting (but) there was no such meeting.

“You can ask all the members,” he told Malaysiakini in an exclusive interview last week.

Prior to the polls, Pakatan Harapan chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad had often claimed that Najib would not hand over the reins and might invoke the NSC if defeated due to fear of arrest.

Speaking to Reuters, Mahathir, who is now prime minister, said he was surprised to have won the election because Najib knew “that if he loses, he may land up in jail.”

“I thought he would have something up his sleeve,” he had said.

On Wednesday, Mahathir thanked BN for a peaceful transition of power.

However, Najib told Malaysiakini there was no “Plan B” and that he did not want the nation to be in a state of emergency.

“I don’t want any bloodshed. That is a complete no-no as far as I was concerned,” he said.

Najib claimed he knew that the Harapan government would have “no choice politically but to persecute him”.

However, he said he is confident that he did not commit any wrongdoing and is willing to face his accusers and clear his name.

Responding to a question, Najib also shared how he felt when the election results rolled in.

“I think we were just in a state of shock and everybody was traumatised.

“But we gathered our thoughts and we decided we have to accept the will of the people and just move on,” he said.

Telephone conversation with Anwar

Previously, Harapan de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim revealed that Najib called him on the night of May 9.

Quizzed on this, Najib declined to reveal what was discussed, saying it was a private conversation.

“In a way, he (Anwar) has a sense of gratitude because I treated him well when he was serving his sentence.

“Towards the end, when he was under treatment, I allowed him to stay in a special rehab which was very comfortable.

“It was in that context that we exchanged our views of the election but there was nothing definite. I think that conversation should be best left on a private basis,” he added.

Responding to another question, Najib also explained the reason for not delivering a speech on the election night, choosing instead to do so the next morning.

“(I did not give the speech on the night of May 9 because) I mean, you have to give me time to recover.

“It is not easy to meet the press the same night, for I had to gather my thoughts and get the final results,” he said.

When Malaysiakini pointed out his statement that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong would decide as no party garnered a majority did not sound like a concession speech, Najib said he was technically correct.

“The next day, the speech was a technically correct speech.

“I had a sense that the Agong will decide in the best interest for the country, which he did; he allowed Harapan to form the government.

“That is fine with us. It is the right of the Agong to decide, under the constitution,” he said.

Asked if anyone advised that he should not concede defeat, Najib said there was no such thing and he would not have heeded such calls.

– M’kini