Let the law take its course on Najib

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad last week said authorities have a ‘perfect case’ against Najib Razak who he toppled from power last month. He appears to be on track. The 92-year-old Mahathir, who returned to power on an anti-corruption plank, wants to see justice meted out to his former protege, Najib for his alleged role in Malaysia’s biggest scam while he was prime minister. Najib got a clean chit during his tenure, but the ghosts of the past have returned to haunt him. The 1MDB fund has proved to be his undoing and billions were allegedly pilfered away by the former PM and his aides. Najib himself allegedly pocketed $681 million, according to reports. Now, he has been arrested after raids at his home saw the seizure of $273 million in precious jewels, watches and cash. Another $29 million in cash has been recovered. Finance ministry sources said total losses were $10 billion. Conservative estimates put it at $4.5 billion. The former PM has denied wrongdoing all along and has claimed some of the cash in question were in gifts, but the mounting evidence is to the contrary and Najib has a lot of answering to do. “If I knew there was going to be misappropriation of funds, if that was my knowledge, I would have acted,” he had said.

Those statements were from a man in power. Najib now sits in a jail cell, and will be charged at a Kuala Lumpur Court on Wednesday. The law must take its course and the government under Mahathir should ensure it does not resort to a witch-hunt. There were fears that corruption was being institutionalised in the country and had begun during Mahathir’s previous terms when he was involved in a power struggle with his other protege Anwar Ibrahim in the late nineties and early 2000s. The veteran leader must now play the good doctor (he is a qualified physician) and heal divisions, revive the Malaysian economy once considered an Asean tiger but now in the doldrums, and boost investor confidence. The task is not easy but can be done if the country’s politicians let the courts do their job and focus on governance by strengthening institutions and lifting the country’s damaged image.