Probe veracity of 'leaked memo' on Najib's case, Umno Youth chief urges AGC
Umno Youth has joined the chorus of voices calling for the attorney-general to probe the veracity of an allegedly leaked document related to the charges against former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and former Treasury secretary-general Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.
In making the call, Umno Youth chief Akmal Saleh said if the document is found to be legitimate, the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) must take immediate action by dropping the six corruption charges against the duo.
“If the contents of the document are true, Umno Youth urges an investigation to be done to see whether there are elements of power abuse involved by certain individuals, to ensure the cases proceeded against Najib.
“In fact, elements of political prosecution like this give a negative image and causes undue losses. The country has suffered losses by receiving only US$1.8 billion, instead of the US$7 billion agreed in negotiations between Najib’s administration and the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC),” he said in a statement.
Elaborating, Akmal (above) said Umno Youth respects the process of law and will not tolerate attempts by any party to abuse the law for their own gain.
It was recently reported that the AGC was probing the alleged leak of a 2019 document related to the charges against Najib and Irwan.
The alleged internal memo from the prosecution team of the IPIC case, which was addressed to former attorney-general Tommy Thomas, purportedly recommended dropping six of the corruption charges against Najib and Irwan because the prosecution felt that a solid prima facie case could not be brought against the pair.
Thomas said he could not remember the purported memo.
Following the report, Najib’s daughter Nooryana Najwa called on the AGC to “do the right thing” and drop the six corruption charges against her father and Irwan.
On Oct 25, 2018, Najib and Irwan were jointly charged under Section 409 of the Penal Code for breach of trust amounting to RM6.6 billion in government funds involving payments to IPIC.
The case was transferred to the High Court on Dec 7, 2018.
Internal AGC memos on specific cases are not for public consumption, and not for UMNO to demand action.
ReplyDeleteLike any other case, there may be internal debate as to the merits or otherwise of a case, but the AGC's actual decision to proceed is the only public decision on record.