Mukhriz urges Malay Rulers to demand direct reports on 1MDB

(Malay Mail Online) – The Conference of Malay Rulers should order investigators examining 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) to report their findings directly to the royal board, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir said today.

Making good on his promise to speak out more on 1MDB following his removal as Kedah mentri besar, the son of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad asserted that there was no progress since the Malay Rulers directed Putrajaya to expedite investigations on the state-owned firm.

Mukhriz said that aside from statements from several ministers, there had been no concrete action to heed the directive from the Sultans, and asked if it was appropriate for the Malay Rulers to be treated in such a manner.

“As such, with the Conference of Malay Rulers set to convene on February 17 and 18, I respectfully beseech Their Majesties the Sultans and the Yang diPertua Negeri to order the Attorney-General, Bank Negara Malaysia Governor, Inspector-General of Police, the Chief Commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the Auditor-General, and the Public Accounts Committee to report their findings on 1MDB to the Conference transparently and honestly,” he said in a statement today.

Mukhriz also joined DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang in calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into 1MDB, urging the Conference of Rulers to initiate such a panel if the aforementioned agencies do not submit their findings as he suggested.

He added that the controversy surrounding 1MDB and related issues have clouded the country for more than a year, and that the world was watching the troubles that have befallen Malaysia.

“The issues I raised are of national interest. Let no one attempt to divert the public’s attention by politicising my statement,” he concluded.

Mukhriz was removed as Kedah MB on Wednesday, after he was informed that he had lost the confidence of the state’s lawmakers.

He had warned then that he would be more outspoken in criticising Umno’s leaders as he would no longer be constrained by the duties of the Kedah mentri besar.

Mukhriz’s sudden removal had prompted speculation that It was due to his father’s criticism of the Umno leadership over 1MDB, although party leaders insisted that it was purely due to the Kedah assemblymen’s loss of confidence in him.

In a statement issued by the Keeper of the Rulers’ Seal, Datuk Seri Syed Danial Syed Ahmad in October, the Malay Rulers said that investigations into 1MDB must be made public in order to show that nothing was being hidden in the probe on the state-owned investment firm.

Improper handling of the 1MDB controversy and related investigations could also affect the economy and even threaten national security, the rulers said in the rare public statement.