After the police revealed the staggering RM1bil market value of seized luxury items from six residences linked to Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, the former premier has insisted that, under the law, it is not illegal to receive gifts.
In an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini on Wesdnesday (June 27), Najib said that as head of government over the years, “we have been gifted with a lot of items by foreign leaders as well as personal friends”.
source: The Star
Malaysia would have been able to go ahead with the shelved mega-projects if not for the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal and other “mini 1MDBs” that are plaguing the country, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.
“We would have been able to afford all these, including the originally planned light rail transit 3 (LRT 3).
“The 1MDB scandal itself cost us RM50bil.
“Many other scandals that are similar to 1MDB has cost us tens, and tens of billions of ringgit. We are now paying the price of the 1MDB scandal,”
source: The Star
“The authorities need to realise that I am an ordinary citizen too. As the head of my household, I too have bills to pay, medical bills to attend to, and a household to run,” the Pekan MP said in a statement on July 11, claiming that he was a victim of a “draconian act” by the Government.
Nazifuddin posted several photos of his time in Moscow on Sunday (July 15) when France beat Croatia 4-2 in the nail-biting final.
In one photo, he is seen posing with Zabivaka, the football-playing wolf who is the Russian World Cup mascot.
He posted photos of himself giving a thumbs-up at the Luzhniki Stadium and also shared a photo op with retired French international footballer Christian Karembeu.
“Yeah! Finals!!! Croatia against France, which is your choice?” Nazifuddin wrote.
On July 5, Nazifuddin set social media on fire after he was spotted wining and dining Taiwanese actress Celia Chang in Taipei.
Taiwanese portal Apple Daily said the pair was seen dining at a steakhouse and having a massage at a top luxury shopping district near Taipei 101.
The Secretary General of the Olympic Council of Malaysia’s jet-setting lifestyle has raised eyebrows as Umno grassroots supporters rallied to raise RM489,166 to help pay the RM1mil bail for his father, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, and for his legal fees.
A week ago before Nazifuddin’s trip to Moscow on July 10, Najib settled his bail after being charged with three counts of criminal breach of trust and another charge of abuse of power involving RM42mil linked to SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
While the family amassed enough funds to pay bail, Najib and his three children claimed that their bank accounts had been frozen in relation to the 1MDB investigation.
source: The Star
“The last Parliament’s experience was extremely shameful in terms of the Speaker being impartial and fair.
…
The conduct of some MPs and the refusal of the previous Speaker to allow a debate on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, he said, had left much to be desired.
“I don’t think we have ever had a Parliament that has shown such impotence and disregard for the problems of society.
source: The Star
..This president is unethical, and untethered to truth and institutional values,…His leadership is transactional, ego driven and about personal loyalty…
We are experiencing a dangerous time in our country..with a political environment where basic facts are disputed, fundamental truth is questioned, lying is normalized and unethical behavior is ignored, excused or rewarded.”
source: New York Times
The Swiss Attorney General Micheal Lauber said he was confident the money laundering probe into scandal-hit Malaysian fund 1MDB would bear fruits and this despite Malaysian authorities’ refusal to cooperate.
“It would have been very desirable from our perspective if Malaysia had cooperated,” he said.
To recap, Malaysia’s Attorney General Office, despite repeatedly saying it will cooperate with any foreign agencies investigating the 1MDB scandal, refused to reply to the Swiss Attorney General’s office request for detailed information on the issue.
In a chilling response, the Swiss AG said: “It’s not hopeless, in fact it’s the opposite,” while addressing a news conference.
He said the probe was making progress, based on money-laundering reports, bank documents and work with Singapore and other countries.
But “we’re still confident that we can successfully conclude the process in this area, in particular in the open cases against the two banks,” he said, referring to Swiss private banks BSI and Falcon.
Malaysia rebuffed Switzerland’s request for legal assistance in probing 1MDB on several occasions, Lauber’s office had said in November.
In his report, Lauber repeated his remarks that his probe of Malaysia’s scandal-hit state fund 1MDB has been hampered by Malaysian authorities’ refusal to co-operate.
source: The Independent
PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong has apologised for the ongoing family dispute involving him and his two younger siblings, admitting that the episode has affected Singapore’s reputation and Singaporeans’ confidence in the government.
In a statement to the nation that was also recorded on video, he announced that he will deliver a ministerial statement when Parliament sits again on July 3 to “refute the charges” levelled against him by his siblings Lee Wei Ling and Lee Hsien Yang.
In a rare move, PM Lee, who is also the secretary-general of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), has instructed that the PAP party whip be lifted that day.
He said that all members of Parliament will have the opportunity to raise questions for themselves and their constituents.
PM Lee urged all MPs, including those who are not from the PAP, to examine the issues thoroughly and question him and his Cabinet colleagues “vigorously”.
….
“Much as I would like to move on, and end a most unhappy experience for Singaporeans, these baseless accusations against the government cannot be left unanswered. They must be and will be dealt with openly and refuted,” he said.
PM Lee hoped that this “full, public airing” in parliament will dispel any doubts that have been planted, and strengthen confidence in Singapore’s institutions and the system of government.
He assured all Singaporeans that this matter would not distract him and the rest of the Cabinet from their responsibility to govern Singapore, and to deal with more important national issues, including the pressing economic and security challenges that the country faces.
“As public servants, my ministers and I will always protect the integrity of our institutions, and uphold the strict standards separating private affairs from our public duties,” said PM Lee.
“We are determined to repair the damage that has been done to Singapore. We will continue to lead our nation and serve you to the best of our ability.”
President Michel Temer was charged with corruption by Brazil’s prosecutor general late Monday. He was accused of taking a $152,000 bribe via an intermediary, an act that, according to the prosecutor general, Rodrigo Janot, “helped to compromise the image of the Federal Republic of Brazil.”
…..
Elections are looming next year, and many lawmakers are facing their own corruption investigations. They may well feel safer siding with the government, even one as shaky as Mr. Temer’s, said Marcus Melo, a professor of political science at the Federal University of Pernambuco.
“He is a lame duck, but incredible as it sounds, he can count on this base because they, too, are implicated in many things,” Mr. Melo said.
…
On Monday, a federal police report said there were indications that Mr. Temer had obstructed justice in apparently encouraging Mr. Batista to keep making payments to Eduardo Cunha, the former speaker of the lower house of Congress, who has been jailed in another corruption case. This could mean a separate charge against the president.
…
On Monday, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, a former president and elder statesman of the party, said in a newspaper column that Mr. Temer should make a “grand gesture” and cut short his mandate.
source: New York Times
Brazil’s federal police Tuesday said there was solid evidence embattled President Michel Temer received bribes, a legal development that could see him suspended from office.
In a report the Federal Supreme Court said Temer — who was away in Russia Tuesday — benefited from bribe funds, even if he did so using someone else to collect or deposit the bribes.
Temer has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
But Brazil’s top court said it had accumulated enough evidence of bribes being paid to merit an investigation into Temer for “passive corruption.”
…“Faced with silence from the president and his former assistant, there is irrefutable evidence… showing strongly that passive corruption (on Temer’s part) took place,” the document said in part….
source: Desiforce
Nearly $30 million of funds stolen from scandal-hit 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) was used to buy jewelry for the prime minister’s wife, including a rare 22-carat pink diamond set in a necklace, according to the latest filings by the U.S. Justice Department in a civil lawsuit.
The filings lodged at the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Thursday did not identify Prime Minister Najib Razak or his wife Rosmah Mansor by name, but said the jewelry purchases were for the wife of “Malaysian Official 1.”
Malaysian and U.S. government sources have previously confirmed that “Malaysian Official 1” refers to Najib.
The diamond necklace set alone cost $27.3 million, according to the latest filings in a lawsuit that was launched last July….
source: Reuters
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