ZETI HATCHET JOB SPLASHED ONLINE: Jho Low accused of ‘PROXY WAR’ to defend ROSMAH & himself
KUALA LUMPUR – As speculation intensifies that Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak is on the verge of sacking central bank governor Zeti Aziz, an expose on her family’s ‘dealings’ has been splashed online.
Critics of the Prime Minister claim the article was sponsored by 1MDB figure Jho Low and his cyber-troopers. Titled Everything to hide: ICIJ reveals Bank Negara Governor Zeti Aziz link to offshore bank accounts, the article was posted ON anonymous website ThereCounter.
“The proxy war has begun. This article is aimed to defame Zeti and pave the way for Rosmah’s supporters to hatch an evil plan to topple her so that she can’t spill the beans on Najib’s involvement in 1MDB,” a political source told Malaysia Chronicle.
This is not the first time Rosmah has been accused of wanting Zeti’s neck after information on her private bank accounts were leaked online. The Malaysian first lady has denied involvement in any plan seeking to oust Zeti, and recently instructed her lawyers to sue a foreign news portal Asia Sentinel for defaming her over the issue.
Nonetheless, the speculation has refused to die off, especially after the Inspector General of Police’s announcement earlier this week that he could not rule out questioning the well-respected Zeti.
Zeti refusing to budge on the truth?
1MDB is a sovereign fund created by Najib when he took office in 2009. The fund is now saddled with an enormous debt of some RM42 billion, and Najib and his family friend Jho Low, stand accused of corruptly diverting and using 1MDB’s funds for their own personal gain.
Najib has denied wrongdoing, while Jho Low is wanted by the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee to answer questions on the 1MDB financial scandal. Jho has however been incommunicado, with no efforts made by the IGP to locate and extradite him back to Malaysia for investigation.
A special task force was set up to probe into the 1MDB debacle including the roles played by Najib and Jho Low. The task force consisted of Bank Negara governor Zeti Aziz, the Attorney-General Gani Patail, Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission chief Abu Kassim and the Inspector General of Police Khalid Bakar.
The AG was recently and controversially sacked by Najib – allegedly just as he was about to arrest the PM on corruption charges, while Abu Kassim has mysteriously ‘disappeared’ from the scene.
Some believe the MACC chief has been ‘deployed’ to the Middle East to investigate a stunning US$700 million ‘donation’ that mysteriously ended up in Najib’s personal bank accounts. In Abu Kassim’s ‘absence’, his deputy was allegedly influenced into clearing Najib of corruption accusations. However, the MACC’s statement that the US$700 mil ‘found’ in Najib’s personal bank accounts came from ‘donors’ and not pillaged from 1MDB has prompted public outrage, as well as setting up the backs of the civil service who are upset they are being forced and intimidated into covering up for Najib.
As for the IGP, he is regarded by many as “Rosmah’s stooge”. Only Zeti, said the source, remains the obstacle to the huge whitewashing conspiracy hatched by Najib’s supporters to clear his name and ensure he stays in power.
The article Everything to hide: ICIJ reveals Bank Negara Governor Zeti Aziz link to offshore bank accounts is appended below. Malaysia Chronicle has NOT been able to contact the well-respected Zeti for her comment on the claims allegedly put up by Jho Low’s cyber-troopers.
Even Najib’s banker brother Nazir Razak has indirectly warned against any move to sack Zeti, using an Instagram posting to point out her formidable connections to global financial figures including IMF chief Christine Lagarde.
