Ministry ready to help in probe into alleged false info on 1MDB — Shabery

KUALA LUMPUR: The Communication and Multimedia Ministry is ready to cooperate with the authorities to help in the investigation into the dissemination of alleged false information on 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) by a former PetroSaudi International (PSI) staff detained in Thailand on Wednesday.

Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the former executive, a Swiss national, had created a negative perception of the government as people regarded anything on the Internet as the truth.

“This has caused a lot of uneasiness among Malaysians and created in the people a negative perception of the government,” he told reporters at the lobby of Parliament House here yesterday.

He said the PSI itself had apologised to Malaysians for the actions of their former staff who had originally wanted to allegedly blackmail the company.

Yesterday, the media reported that Thai police had detained the man and charged him for attempting to blackmail PSI, an international company based in Saudi Arabia which is well-known in Malaysia as it had worked with 1MDB.

Following the alleged blackmail attempt, several emails and documents were published by the blog, Sarawak Report, leading to accusations against the 1MDB.

In a separate development, Ahmad Shabery said the amendments to the Communication and Multimedia Act to be tabled in Parliament in October would propose heavier penalties for individuals who abused the social media.