PH-era probe found I was not linked to submarine deal, says Najib

“It was not me who negotiated the deal. It was the 4th prime minister who selected the submarines and negotiated the deal”

(FMT) – Former prime minister Najib Razak says Pakatan Harapan had failed to prove that he was involved in the bribery scandal linked to the procurement of submarines from France in 2002.

Najib said PH’s investigation in 2018 did not find any evidence that he was involved in the deal, adding that it was a part of the opposition’s propaganda to tarnish his image.

He said PH also tried to link him with the 2006 murder of Mongolian interpreter Altantuya Shaariibuu by two police officers of the Special Action Unit (UTK) who were previously his bodyguards.

In a Facebook post, Najib explained that while he was the defence minister when the deal was signed to buy two Scorpene-class submarines and one Agosta submarine from French defence equipment manufacturing group Thales, it was the former prime minister (Dr Mahathir Mohamad) who made the purchase in a deal worth US$1.2 billion.

“It was not me who negotiated the deal. It was the 4th prime minister who selected the submarines and negotiated the deal,” he said.

Recently, opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim urged the government and “relevant parties” to state if Malaysians involved in the scandal would be brought to justice.

Muda also urged the authorities to reopen investigations into the procurement of submarines.

This comes after a report that a French court had charged Thales with complicity in bribery over the purchase of the three submarines.