Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak said he will explain to the Dewan Rakyat about his remarks - that 1MDB’s debts were not paid using taxpayers’ money - after the Johor state polls are concluded.
Speaking to reporters in Bukit Gambir, Johor today, the Pekan MP said he will contact Dewan Rakyat speaker Azhar Azizan Harun over the latter’s demand for him to explain the matter during tomorrow’s Parliament sitting.
“I will reply to him (Azhar),” Najib (above) said when asked about the speaker’s letter asking him to explain his remarks to the august House.
“I cannot do it tomorrow because I am in Johor. I will contact him.
“After the election, I will give my explanation,” he said.
Yesterday, it was reported that Azhar wrote a letter to Najib asking him to provide an explanation to the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.
The speaker said this when asked in Parliament yesterday for feedback on Tony Pua’s (Pakatan Harapan-Damansara) motion for Najib to be referred to the Parliamentary Rights and Privileges Committee under Standing Order 36 (12) of the Dewan Rakyat over the remarks.
Pua submitted the motion following Najib’s speech in the Dewan Rakyat on March 2 which was said to contain statements that allegedly misled the House on the 1MDB debt issue and could be construed as insulting to the House of Representatives.
Najib had said in Dewan Rakyat when debating the royal address that no public funds were used to pay off 1MDB debts.
However, his statement was refuted by Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz and former finance minister Lim Guan Eng.
'Nonsense!'
Najib’s statement also drew the ire of former premier Muhyiddin Yassin, who refuted the claim that no public funds were used to repay the principal amount of 1MDB debts.
According to Muhyiddin, 1MDB debts are guaranteed by the government and so when 1MDB fails to repay its debts, the government has to fork out money.
In response to this, Najib during today’s presser regarded the Perikatan Nasional chairperson as talking “nonsense”.
He claimed that what the government used was monies that they recovered from investment bank Goldman Sachs, and not from the taxpayers’ coffers.
“That is not the people’s money. Are monies from Goldman Sachs public funds?
“How come he said it was the people’s money? That was Goldman Sachs.
“That is not public funds. Mengarut (nonsense),” said Najib.
The BN leader also took a swipe at Muhyiddin in response to the latter’s remarks, where Muhyiddin said he was grateful that Najib is no longer prime minister.
He said that Muhyiddin was a failure of a prime minister and that he lost power due to losing people's trust. - Mkini
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