16 February 2016•Update: 16 February 2016
By P Prem Kumar
KUALA LUMPUR
Malaysia’s long-ruling party denied involvement Tuesday in a police probe launched into former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad following posts on his blog criticizing the country’s current premier and attorney general.
Malaysian police announced Monday that 90-year-old Mohamad, Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister, was being investigated after posting comments about PM Najib Razak and Apandi Ali, who cleared the premier of charges over an alleged $681 million political donation.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi insisted Tuesday that the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) had no intension of having Mohamad imprisoned, but underlined that laws must be respected.
"It [the probe] has nothing to do with UMNO. It is something to do with law and order, so please seek advice from the inspector-general of police," Hamidi, who is also the party's vice-chief, told reporters in capital Kuala Lumpur.
Earlier this month, Mohamad had called for Razak’s resignation in a blog post saying, "Malaysia must be freed from a prime minister with such a bad reputation if it is to regain its reputation."
Mohamad – Razak's once mentor turned fiercest critic – also said Ali's decision last month to take no further action on Razak pertaining to the $681 million political donation had been “meaningless” as the chief prosecutor "had no credibility".
Inspector general of police Khalid Abu Bakar said Monday that his team had started a defamation probe under Section 500 of the Penal Code — which carries a two-year jail term, a fine, or both upon conviction – after receiving several reports over the posts.
Meanwhile, Mohamad stressed Tuesday that he would never back off from calling for the resignation of Razak and his "ill administration", expressing his belief that his efforts were for the benefit of the country's future.
"I always believe that when you fail, you get up, and try again and again. It is whether what we have been doing is worthwhile or not," he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.
“I [will] still emphasize the need for Najib to step down. Everything goes back to him,” he added.
On Jan. 26, Ali stated that Razak had not committed any crimes in connection with the “political donation” from the "Saudi royal family", as well as a further 42 million Ringgit (nearly $10 million) deposited in his accounts from the finance ministry’s SRC International Sdn Bhd.
He also said $620 million of the donation had been returned, and ordered the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to close two ongoing probes on Razak.
The premier has insisted that he had not swindled funds for personal gain, whether it be from SRC International, indebted state investment vehicle 1MDB -- Razak's brainchild, of which SRC is a subsidiary -- or other entities.
