Malaysia PM Anwar says he disagrees with UMNO paying Najib’s US$12.3 million fine
“It should not give the impression that corruption involving billions of ringgit can simply be overlooked,” said Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
A composite image of Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) and former prime minister Najib Razak. (Photos: CNA/Fadza Ishak)
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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Friday (Nov 6) said he disagrees with the decision by former premier Najib Razak’s United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party to pay his RM50 (US$12.3 million) fine, stressing that corruption involving billions of ringgit should not be dismissed.
“If UMNO wants to pay the RM50 million, that is their decision, their business,” he told reporters, as quoted by news outlet New Straits Times (NST).
“My personal view is that I disagree. While we maintain a spirit of friendship with Najib, it should not give the impression that corruption involving billions of ringgit can simply be overlooked.”
Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan coalition governs Malaysia alongside UMNO in the unity government.
Anwar on Friday said Malaysians must uphold firm moral principles against corruption and abuse of power.
“What do we want to teach our children? A strong moral principle that rejects abuse of power and corruption,” he added.
Earlier on Friday morning, UMNO secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki confirmed that the party had paid Najib’s fine at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
He said the “Najib Razak Solidarity Fund”, a crowdfunding campaign launched on Sep 18, had collected sufficient donations to cover the payment.
The payment thus fulfilled a key condition of the conditional royal pardon granted by Malaysian king Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar on Sep 18 allowing Najib to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, subject to certain conditions.
Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee also confirmed that the High Court had issued a house arrest order following the payment.
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Meanwhile, Democratic Action Party (DAP) member and former MP Tony Pua has called for an audit of the donations raised, Free Malaysia Today reported.
An audit by Bank Negara Malaysia and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission would be vital to ensure the funds raised were legitimate and not laundered, he added in a Facebook post.
Pua also raised concerns about UMNO’s decision to settle the fine, saying that it could have been used to help ordinary Malaysians.
Najib, who served as Malaysia’s prime minister from 2009 to 2018, has been in jail since 2022.
He was originally sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined RM210 million after being convicted of seven charges involving RM42 million belonging to SRC International, a former subsidiary of state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). He has consistently denied wrongdoing.
In 2024, Malaysia’s Pardons Board halved his prison term to six years and reduced his fine to RM50 million.
Najib subsequently mounted a legal battle over what he said was an addendum order by then King Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.
In September, Malaysia’s king granted Najib a conditional pardon.
Source: Agencies/ia
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