MACC will fire the second shot after BNM

By MT Webmaster Last updated Oct 24, 2015

To strengthen this perception even further, a second report needs to be lodged against 1MDB. And this time it will be the Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) that lodges this report. But it will be the same frivolous report that has no leg to stand on, just like the earlier BNM report. And, yet again, the AGC will not pursue this case for the same reason it could not pursue the BNM report.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) lodged a report with the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) about alleged irregularities regarding 1MDB (mainly involving the alleged incomplete information it had given BNM). The fact that a report had been lodged can only mean a crime has been committed. If not why would BNM lodge a report?

That is the power of suggestion and perception.

The AGC then declared that after investigating the case they found that no crime has been committed. Since the AGC dropped the case that can only mean there is a cover-up. If not why would the AGC not pursue the case when BNM had lodged a report? BNM would not lodge a report unless there was a case.

That, again, is the power of suggestion and perception.

So this is really about the game of perception. One perception is there must be a case if a report has been lodged and the second perception is there must be a cover-up if the case is not being pursued. Hence, based on both these perceptions, 1MDB must be guilty of a crime and, therefore, this can only mean the Prime Minister is involved in a crime.

As they say, the devil is in the details. So what are the details or, as one would say, what are the facts of the case. Well, most Malaysians would respond with, “Why confuse me with the facts when I have already made up my mind based on perception?”

Actually, that was a very clever move by BNM. Lodge a frivolous report knowing that the AGC will never pursue a case that has no leg to stand on and then play up the perception that since a report has been lodged then there definitely must be a case and since the AGC does not pursue the case then there must be a cover-up.

No doubt this case will never hold up in court. In fact, the AGC will not even bother to bring the case to court in the first place because if they do it will get thrown out. But then they are not really concerned about the trial. They know there will never be a trial. What they want to do is just to create a perception and win their case in the court of public opinion.

And in the court of public opinion facts do not really matter. Perception does.

But in the court of public opinion this is good enough. Two reports — one from BNM and another from MACC. Surely there must be a case if two reports are made by two different agencies. There cannot be two reports from two different agencies if there is no case.

And if the AGC, again, does not pursue the case, then without a doubt there is a cover-up. If only once then maybe we can give the AGC the benefit of the doubt. But if two cases are involved then there is no longer any doubt. There is definitely a cover-up.

That is what the perception is going to be and the court of public opinion is going to deliver a guilty verdict.

So let us see what the MACC does over the next two weeks or so. I would put my money on a second report coming from the MACC over the next fortnight. And this second report will go the way of the first report. But this is what they want to happen because this is how the perception of guilt is going to be created.

What is the purpose of this perception game? Well, one reason is they want to push for a vote of no confidence in Parliament. However, they are not too sure that this is going to succeed and that is why they have a backup plan.

They need at least 112 Members of Parliament for the vote of no confidence to pass and they are not confident they are going to get the numbers. In fact, they are not even confident that the vote of no confidence is going to see the light of day let alone pass with a majority vote.

So they need to try a second ‘vote of no confidence’ at the Umno general assembly in mid-December this year.

They have already released a poll that says Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has less than one-third support of the voters. This means if Najib is still Prime Minister come the next general election in 2018, Umno is going to lose the election. Hence, to save Umno, Najib needs to go. It is now about “it is not that I love Najib less but I love Umno more”. What next? Et tu Brute?

Yes, the perception being created is that Umno is going to get wiped out unless they get rid of Najib. BNM lodged a report and nothing happened. Now MACC is going to lodge a report as well and still nothing happens. The vote of no confidence in Parliament is a non-starter. So the last resort is Umno must throw him out to save the party. Let Umno turn on its own leader.

But for this to happen the perception has to be very strong. First must be the perception of guilt and since BNM and MACC both said Najib is guilty then he must be guilty or else they would not say so. Second must be the perception that Umno will ‘die’ if Najib does not ‘die’ first. So, to save itself, Umno will finish off Najib. That is the only way Umno can rule the country forever. If not Pakatan Rakyat will take over and Anwar Ibrahim is going to be the next Prime Minister.

And this is what the anti-Najib forces are working on. However, there is still one detail they need to sort out first. In August, Sarawak Report published what it claims is the papers to arrest Najib. MACC then denied this and made a police report saying that the papers are fake.

So how do they backtrack on this? Are they still going to say the papers are false and that is why they made a police report saying that? Or are they going to now say the papers are authentic and therefore they made a false police report? MACC has to prepare a story to explain this if they wish to pursue this planned report. And thus far they are still trying to perfect their story.

Raja Petra Kamarudin RPK