20th September, the day Anwar and Najib got black eyes
So, Mahathir is very upset. If they cannot nail Najib for stealing RM42 billion of 1MDB’s money, then at least nail him for the RM2.6 billion. Force Najib to prove the RM2.6 billion was NOT stolen from 1MDB — instead of the government needing to prove it was. In other words, make Najib prove his innocence instead of the government needing to prove his guilt. Then jail Najib for failing to prove his innocence — just like they did with Anwar in 1999.
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
Raja Petra Kamarudin
It was the night of 20th September 1998 that they picked up Anwar Ibrahim from his house under the Internal Security Act for being a threat to national security. Just a few hours earlier, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had stood in the penthouse of Bukit Aman to watch a massive 100,000 anti-government demonstration (the first time in Malaysian history such a thing happened) led by Anwar on the Selangor Club Padang a.k.a. Dataran Merdeka.
The IGP, Abdul Rahim Mohd Nor — infamous for how he used to assassinate Communist Terrorists in cold blood in the Perak jungles in the days when he led these operations — advised Mahathir that they need to lock up Anwar. If these demonstrations were allowed to continue, it would only be a matter of time that the government falls and Anwar takes over as Prime Minister.
20th September 1998: the day Mahathir gave Anwar and Malaysia a black eye
A special SWAT team was set up for this purpose. One pro-Anwar supporter found out and although he was on leave that day he volunteered to join the team. He had heard if there was any resistance then they were to shoot to kill. So he wanted to infiltrate the SWAT team to make sure Anwar is not ‘assassinated’.
The police rushed into Anwar’s house and kicked in the door although the door was open and not locked. They knocked down the crowd of reporters who were covering the ceramah and grabbed Anwar roughly.
The ‘infiltrator’ then whispered to Anwar to follow him upstairs to the master bedroom. He then told Anwar that if the crowd resisted, as it appears it was going to be, then they were ordered to shoot and there would be bloodshed. Mahathir wanted chaos so that an emergency could be declared and Parliament could be suspended.
Mahathir panicked when he saw the 100,000 crowd on Dataran Merdeka on 20th September 1998 and he blinked first
This was Mahathir’s desperate attempt to hold on to power as he saw that the anti-Mahathir Reformasi movement was gaining traction and it would be a matter of time before the government falls.
That same night, the IGP beat up Anwar and left him on the floor unconscious till the following morning while refusing the appeals from his officers to call in a doctor. It was not until days later that Dr Vasantha was allowed to treat Anwar’s injuries.
Anwar said he was first examined by Dr M.Vasantha on Sept 24 in the afternoon and he informed the doctor that he required further examination. She prescribed some medicine for him.
”Only after that was I given medication, white cloth and hot water to compress on my swollen forehead,” he said.
Subsequently, his condition improved a little and he was able to walk steadily without any assistance.
”But I did object on being blindfolded due to the sensitivity of the swollen eye but they said they had to do it,” he said. (Utusan Malaysia, 24th February 1999)
Mahathir said Anwar punched his own face to gain sympathy but the IGP confessed he had beaten up Anwar
Yes, 20th September 1998. The day reformists and activists said Mahathir not only gave Anwar a black eye but gave the entire nation a black eye as well.
Today, 20th September 2018, how will this day be remembered? It is too early to say but for one it is the day that Mahathir blinked first — and the one to blink first loses the gunfight.
It is now more than four months since Pakatan Harapan took over the federal government and one month over the 100 days ‘honeymoon’ period. Yes, one month overdue from the 100 days and still nothing solid with which to nail Najib Tun Razak.
Thus far they have charged him for just RM42 million. What happened to the charges regarding the RM42 billion that Najib was supposed to have stolen? Even the book (Billion Dollar Whale) recently launched says that Najib may not have known what Jho Low was doing and that Najib was not the only one who Jho Low conned.
Najib will be asked to prove his innocence so that the government does not need to prove his guilt: yet another black eye for the Malaysian justice system
And nowhere in that book does it mention that RM42 billion was stolen from 1MDB.
Now, the two authors of this book are supposed to be the whistleblowers of the 1MDB affair and they are supposed to know everything that has happened. And yet they do not say Najib stole RM42 billion of 1MDB’s money.
So, Mahathir is very upset. If they cannot nail Najib for stealing RM42 billion of 1MDB’s money, then at least nail him for the RM2.6 billion. Force Najib to prove the RM2.6 billion was NOT stolen from 1MDB — instead of the government needing to prove it was. In other words, make Najib prove his innocence instead of the government needing to prove his guilt. Then jail Najib for failing to prove his innocence — just like they did with Anwar in 1999.
