Najib ENLISTS Nazir

Brother among 10 named to SPECIAL COMMITTEE to strengthen economy

PPrime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak yesterday named 10 economists and corporate leaders to a special economic committee formed by Putrajaya to formulate immediate and medium-term plans to strengthen the Malaysian economy.

Among them is his brother, CIMB group chairman Datuk Seri Nazir Abdul Razak, who has been critical of the controversial sovereign fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Najib said the committee, which will look into maintaining the stability of the financial market and strengthening confidence in the capital market, will be headed by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar.

Besides Nazir, others named to the committee are:

Khazanah Nasional Berhad vicepresident Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop;

Khazanah Nasional Berhad managing director Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar;

China Banking Regulatory Commission chief adviser Tan Sri Andrew Sheng Len Tao;

Symphony Life Berhad executive chairman Tan Sri Mohamed Azman Yahya;

RAM Holdings Berhad group CEO Datuk Seri K. Govindan; Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Noor

PETALING JAYA: Responding to the Johor Sultan’s call for urgent action to address the multiple crises facing the country, DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang has called for an emergency parliament sitting to be held in the first week of September.

Lim said in a statement yesterday that the emergency sitting is to address three issues – economic, political and governance – and to fill the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) vacancies as well as decide whether the nation needs a new prime minister and new government.

Sultan Ibrahim Ismail Iskandar of Johor had earlier this week uged the federal government to resolve the instability facing the country as well as check the ringgit’s fall.

The Sultan also said the “unstable political and economic situation” in the country is a major issue which has to be dealt with immediately.

Lim noted that among those who have spoken out are the nation’s top banker and brother of the prime minister, CIMB group chairman Datuk Nazir Razak, and a former international trade and industry minister for more than two decades, Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz.

Nazir, he said, voiced concern over the economy due to the ringgit’s freefall and said “people in power should stop saying ‘stupid things’ in order to help the economy”.

Rafidah questioned whether Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak’s acceptance of RM2.6 billion, said to be from a Middle Eastern donor, has opened Umno to manipulation by foreigners.