KUALA LUMPUR – Retired servicemen group National Patriot Association (Patriot) has lauded Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s fight against systematic corruption, urging all Malaysians, regardless of their political affiliation, to throw their support behind Anwar’s “determined efforts”.
Pointing to Anwar’s order for authorities to continue investigating those named in the 2021 Pandora Papers exposé, Patriot president Datuk Mohamed Arshad Raji said that Malaysians have a “patriotic will” to bring high-profile and corrupt individuals to light.
“The time has finally come for all such individuals who had benefited from being close associates and cronies of our past political masters, or are politicians still in power, to now face the full brunt of the law.
“Viva Malaysia. The war has begun. It is time to enlist ourselves to join the prime minister in this mother of all battles.
“Anyone who attempts to derail Anwar’s war against corruption is a traitor to the nation and Patriot will not hesitate to publicly call out such criminal minds,” he warned in a statement today.
Pledging the group’s support towards Anwar’s anti-graft endeavours, the veterans association chief also asserted that previous prime ministers were “totally unaware of the shameless looting that went on under their charge”.
“It took the arrival of our 10th prime minister (Anwar) for Malaysians to be made very aware of the shocking extent of corruption, power abuse, and the billions of ringgit that had been squandered by individuals in high places who were protected by the powers that be.
“It is only (Anwar) who has the courage to stop the rot that has led to our blessed nation being branded as one of the most corrupt nations in the world, (with) its political leaders, beneficiaries and cronies enjoying the looting,” Arshad said
He added that the wealth of the nation, if found to have been stolen by corrupt individuals, should ultimately return to law-abiding citizens.
“If indeed the billions (of ringgit) held by such unscrupulous individuals were derived from unlawful means and is proven by the court, the righteous cause of action is to force the thieving individuals to return (the money) to where it rightfully belongs.
“If the stolen money was from the national coffer, it will have to be returned to the national coffer. There shall be no compromises in this regard,” he said.
During the Dewan Rakyat proceedings on Tuesday, Anwar requested for MPs to take a stern stand on probes into names appearing in the Pandora Papers leak – an exposé by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists of key individuals and their links to offshore entities in various jurisdictions.
According to Anwar, those implicated in the Pandora Papers scandal include former prime ministers, ex-finance ministers and other past cabinet ministers believed to have abused their positions of authority to gain wealth.
He also blamed a lack of political will prior to his tenure as prime minister for the slow progress of investigations, claiming previous administrations were reluctant to take action against the big names involved. – The Vibes, February 25, 2023
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