December 10, 2015•Update: December 10, 2015
By P Prem Kumar
KUALA LUMPUR
Malaysia’s embattled prime minister declared his innocence at his long-ruling party’s annual assembly Thursday, insisting he will remain in office as no wrongdoings had been committed in recent political and financial scandals.
"I will never back off. I will remain as the President of UMNO [United Malays National Organization] and the Prime Minister as long as the party and Malaysians want me to," Najib Razak said to a loud cheer from delegates.
He told 4,000 grassroots members at the general assembly that alleged wrongdoings -- related to indebted state investment arm 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and a $700 million political donation -- were baseless.
Razak said he was in the right despite the allegations leveled against him, and that there was a solution for every problem.
"When we are faced with problems, we cannot run away from it. That is my principle,” he said. “I am confident that the truth would emerge as God is watching all of us and he knows that I was right all the way."
The assembly was held amid widespread expectations that Razak would have to offer explanations about 1MDB and the $700 million discovered in his bank accounts.
Among those gathered were Razak’s fiercest critic former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and estranged UMNO deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin, who was sacked in July from his post as a deputy premier.
Razak told the assembly that 1MDB, which has amassed 42 billion Ringgit ($11.6 billion) in debt in just six years of operations, is currently being well managed and that its troubles are in the process of being resolved.
He said the recent sale of the fund’s energy assets to a Chinese firm had reduced its debts by 17 billion Ringgit.
"This clearly indicates that the 1MDB's rationalization plan was on track. We can expect more announcements from them [1MDB], to convince the people the problem will be resolved,” he added.
Razak also maintained his innocence about the funds found in his accounts, reiterating that the $700 million was a political donation from abroad and had not been derived from 1MDB as alleged.
He stressed that political donations were a norm worldwide and did not constitute a crime, and that the country's anti-graft commission had met with the Middle Eastern donors involved.
The premier had been questioned last week by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency on the funds deposited in the accounts in 2013.
In early July, international press reports had claimed that billions of Ringgit was channeled from 1MDB's accounts to those belonging to Razak. The suggestion has led to nationwide civilian protests demanding his resignation and demands for an explanation.
The premier has stated that he did not swindle funds for personal gain as alleged by political opponents, be it from 1MDB, Finance Ministry-owned SRC International or other entities.
Politicians within UMNO later clarified that the funds came from "Middle East Royals" who wanted UMNO to retain power.
