FROM ‘SPEND NOW, STEAL LATER’ TO ‘PAY NOW, TALK LATER’? NAJIB AT RISK OF LOSING HIS PEKAN SEAT AS IRB REFUSES TO GIVE HIM SPECIAL TREATMENT

THE Inland Revenue Board has warned Najib Razak to pay RM1.69 billion in owed taxes or risk being declared a bankrupt, effectively stripping him of his parliamentary seat, his lawyer said.IRB has filed a suit to recover the amount and wants the former prime minister to pay his dues before he is allowed to take the matter to court.

Lawyers representing the board are planning to file an application for a summary judgment, in spite of an appeal from Najib.

“This is an unfortunate case of pay now, talk later. Except pay now is to the tune of RM1.69 billion, which will effectively bankrupt my client and disqualify him as an MP,” said lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee.

Najib has been Pekan MP since 1976.

“Hence, this is why we are filing for a stay of proceedings of this matter pending the resolution of the assessment,” he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

The next case management is set for August 30.

Lawyers from both sides appeared before High Court deputy registrar Nurliana Ismail today, who ordered Najib to file his statement of defence by August 12.

The IRB is seeking to recover RM1.69 billion in income tax that Najib owes for the assessment years 2011-2017.

It seeks full payment of the sum, with interest at 5% per year from the date of judgment as allowed by law, as well as costs and other relief deemed fit by the court.

A notice was sent via registered mail to Najib on March 25 to his last address at Jalan Langgak Duta, Taman Duta in Kuala Lumpur, and the mail was not returned to the IRB.

Najib has disputed the additional taxation, saying  the money in his accounts came from foreign donations and political funding, which were not taxable.

“If we observe carefully, it clearly shows that this tax is imposed on what I received from donations and contributions from overseas into my account,” he said in a Facebook post on July 4.

“These include donations from Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Finance and the Arab prince which have been confirmed by bank officers in the trial of the SRC case,” he said. – July 25, 2019

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