Ex-cabinet ministers in the dark over MACC lobbying against Najib

Several former cabinet ministers say they are in the dark over newly appointed MACC chief commissioner Shukri Abdull's claims about lobbying efforts in 2015 to replace then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Paul Low, the former minister in the prime minister's department who was in charge of the MACC, said he was not informed about the commission's top brass approaching cabinet ministers to ask them to replace Najib over the 1MDB scandal in 2015.

"I didn't know about this. They did not approach me. Anyway, it is not within my powers.

"I am not a politician so my stand is different. Yes, (I am in charge of MACC) but not everything (they do) I need to know," he said when contacted by Malaysiakini.

Similarly, former tourism and culture minister Mohamed Nazri Aziz also said he was unaware about these efforts by MACC.

"Not me. I am not aware and I was not approached," Nazri said. This sentiment was echoed by former minister in the prime minister's department Wee Ka Siong. "I was not aware of this," he said.

Malaysiakini attempted to contact nine others who were ministers in 2015 but was unsuccessful.

Deaf ears

Yesterday, Shukri held a tell-all press conference where he revealed that he and then MACC chief Abu Kassim Mohamed had met with ministers to "convince them that the RM2.6 billion and RM42 million SRC International cases were not made up".

"(We told them) please, get rid of this person (Najib), get rid of this corrupt person.

"Get rid of Najib and replace him with whomever, with Ahmad Zahid Hamidi or Hishammuddin Hussein," he had said.

However, he said their pleas fell on deaf ears and only three ministers - Muhyiddin Yassin, Shafie Apdal and Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah - took heed of their warning.

Last night, former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi also claimed that he did not know about MACC's appeal to act against Najib.

Zahid, when asked about the matter, turned to Umno vice-president Hishammuddin Hussein on his right and secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor on his left and asked: "Did you meet (MACC)?"

Neither of them said anything and appeared to shrug off the question.

Hishamuddin was defence minister at the time, Tengku Adnan the Federal Territories minister. -Mkini