At a special chamber meeting in Parliament yesterday, de facto law deputy minister Mas Ermieyati Samsudin told the members of parliament that it was not easy for Malaysian authorities to obtain information from the United States.
There is no reason why the US Department of Justice (DOJ) would not share information over the new revelations made by former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner about how he had helped former Prime Minister, Najib Razak and Malaysian fugitive, Jho Low in stealing billions of US dollars from 1MDB.
I would like Mas Ermieyati to further explain to the rakyat if our authorities have ever asked the US authorities for assistance on Leissner’s latest disclosures. Where is the official response from the DOJ? Is Mas not telling the truth when she said it is not easy to obtain cooperation with a superpower that is on the 1MDB trail. I am sure the US embassy in Malaysia is more than willing to assist Malaysia in bringing the criminals in both countries to justice.
Mas Ermieyati has also given the excuse that the police are unable to further its investigation in Singapore on Tawfiq Ayman, the husband of former Bank Negara Malaysia governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz, over allegedly receiving 1MDB-linked funds because the borders between the two countries are currently closed.
Mas Ermieyati’s reply is simply irrational, not befitting someone in her position. Under the current uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic, the police can and should make use of various means of electronic communications, from video conferencing calls to emails, to contact its counterpart in Singapore for information and documents. I am also pretty sure that the High Commission of Singapore in Kuala Lumpur is pleased to help our police on this ongoing investigation.
If court cases can be done online, why do we need to proceed with further action only when the borders of both countries reopen? This is especially when the case has generated public interest, not only in Malaysia, but worldwide, putting Malaysia’s reputation at stake in the eyes of investors.
Enough is enough! The government must stop finding excuses in delaying the 1MDB corruption investigation. We need a closure on 1MDB, which is dubbed the biggest scandal in financial history worldwide, by throwing the books at every criminal involved in the scandal and recovering whatever amount of the stolen 1MDB money.