Thousands rally in Malaysia to oust premier Najib Razak
Malaysia’s opposition are counting on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal to turn as many voters as they can against Najib
KUALA LUMPUR: Thousands of protesters gathered at an unsanctioned rally on Saturday to demand action against Prime Minister Najib Razak over the mismanagement of billions of dollars by a state fund.
Malaysia’s opposition are counting on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal to turn as many voters as they can against Najib, who can call for national polls anytime between now and the middle of next year.
The prime minister has so far been able to weather the scandal, consolidating power by clamping down on dissenters and curbing local media and activists even as he faces a fierce challenge from his former mentor, Mahathir Mohamad.
But rising living costs and a broad-based consumption tax are leaving people like Hasmur- ni Tamby, a 42-year-old single mother of five, fed up with the way things are going under Najib.
“Prices of everything have gone up but not our salaries. We can’t save. So we don’t want this leader anymore,” said Hasmurni, who travelled several hours north from her home state of Malacca to attend the evening rally.
Saturday’s rally was touted as the finale of a two month-long antikleptocracy roadshow, a platform set up by the opposition Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition to convince the majority Malay-Muslim voters in rural battleground areas that the country has suffered from Najib’s handling of 1MDB. Full story @ timesofoman.com/world