The Court of Appeal’s judgement today has in essence quashed the case which was meant to compel Najib, 1MDB and the Malaysian Federal Government to answer some important questions relating to 1MDB.
This has further erased hopes that the courts would be the last avenue where we can seek justice for our people. Or at least seek answers to questions on 1MDB, that the regime is doing everything it can to silence.
Despite today’s court outcome, GANT1 and Pakatan Harapan Youth will do everything it can to appeal against the decision. Because we deserve nothing less than the truth.
Our demands are simple. We seek to stop the siphoning of our tax money to cover up the scandalous 1MDB hole. We also want details of 1MDB’s payments to IPIC and Aabar Investments PJS to be revealed to us.
Members of Parliament have raised perfectly legitimate concerns on 1MDB critical to Malaysia’s reputation and public interest – even tabling a motion about 1MDB for debate. Today, Pakatan Harapan politicians Nga Kor Ming (DAP-Taiping), V Sivakumar (DAP-Batu Gajah) and Ngeh Koo Ham (DAP-Beruas) were suspended after they sought the Speaker’s resignation. Pandikar Amin Mulia had rejected their request for an emergency motion on the 1MDB-linked luxury yacht Equanimity and questions related to 1MDB. If questions cannot be asked in Parliament, where can they be asked?
We now see the courts buying into Najib’s lawyers’ ridiculous arguments based on technical grounds, which will enable Najib to escape the stand. This in effect removes the courts as a platform to reveal the rotten and corrupt truth about 1MDB.
We have seen the government decree anything 1MDB-related that didn’t come from the government as fake news, and Parliament is about to rubber stamp laws to criminalise fake news. Simply put, it will be a crime to say anything about 1MDB that doesn’t fit into BN’s narrative.
All channels of civic expression from social media postings to coffeeshop chats will now be stifled in the face of official BN-sanctioned narratives. Debates and discourse will now be conducted at the risk of arrests and prosecution.
The entire government machinery – from the legislature to the judiciary – has been put to work to shut down any public discussion or questioning of 1MDB.
If Najib has nothing to hide, why not proudly stand in a court of law and fearlessly answer us?
Perhaps, he has everything to hide. But we Malaysians will not be duped!