KUALA LUMPUR – Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad’s discharge and acquittal in his RM1 million money-laundering case has prompted an Umno Supreme Council member to renew calls for a review of charges against other top Umno figures.
Datuk Mohd Puad Zarkashi questioned the criminal cases against former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, calling them “suspicious”.
He said his suspicion was based on the lack of evidence in Shahrir’s case that led to his freeing earlier today.
“Why is the case dropped? Because the investigating officer herself admitted that the investigation was incomplete but the attorney-general at that time ordered to continue with the charges.
“The question is who is the culprit? That’s why the prime minister has to immediately do ‘institutional reforms’. Many charges, including against Najib and Zahid, are suspicious. The justice system is being raped,” Puad said in a Facebook post.
Earlier today, the high court acquitted Shahrir of his money-laundering charge after the prosecution said it would not pursue the case.
During the trial, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s case investigative officer Nurzahidah Yacop testified that the investigations were incomplete when Shahrir was charged.
Among other things Nurzahidah had said in her testimony was that the RM1 million was meant to be used for political activities, as Shahrir was also Johor Baru Umno division chief.
Based on these events, Puad said similar situations could have been present in Zahid and Najib’s cases, as well as in Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s and even Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah’s graft cases.
“If Shahrir’s case falls, then the charges against Najib, Rosmah, and Shafie, which are all under AMLA/LHDN, should also fail,” he added.
Puad was referring to the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing, and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLA) and the Income Tax Act.
In the same statement, Puad had also called for judge Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali, who had found Najib guilty in one of the former prime minister’s cases, to be charged.
Currently, Najib is serving a 12-year prison sentence and also has to pay a RM210 million fine after the Federal Court had upheld his conviction by Nazlan in the SRC International case in 2020.
Najib has since filed a review on the Federal Court’s decision, citing among many other reasons that judge Nazlan had a conflict of interest in presiding over the SRC International case. – The Vibes, January 5, 2023
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