Stop blaming me for current ills, Najib tells govt

PETALING JAYA: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak hopes that the Pakatan Harapan government will stop blaming him and the previous administration for the country’s current woes.

Listing the problems that have affected Malaysia since the May 9 polls, Najib said he hoped that the government would instead focus its attention on solving those woes in the face of more challenging economic conditions ahead.

For example, he said, there had been a 35% reduction in the number of Chinese tourists to Malaysia since the middle of the year, bringing about a loss of some RM13bil in income for the country.

He said before the polls, the number of Chinese visitors rose by 70% within the first four months of the year.

Speaking during a 15-minute Facebook live session, he said there had been a loss of 70,000 jobs and that the value of the ringgit against the US dollar had gone down from RM3.85 when he stepped down as prime minister to RM4.17 currently.

The prices of commodities such as palm oil and rubber had also decreased while many of the social nets put into place by the previous administration were either reduced or done away with, Najib said.

“What is worrying is that International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde has predicted that next year will be more challenging due to the reduction in international trade and this will impact economic growth.

“External factors are expected to exert pressure on the economy of countries like Malaysia.

“I hope that the government will do away with tendency to blame Najib Razak or the Barisan administration for all the woes and instead focus on facing the economic challenges ahead,” he said.

The opposition, he added, would continue to play its role in a constructive manner to bring the country forward.