Former Prime Minister Najib Razak has been sentenced to 12 years in prison in a high-profile corruption case involving Malaysia's state-funded One Malaysia Development Berhad (OneMDB). A court in Kuala Lumpur announced his sentence on Tuesday. Najib said he would appeal against the verdict. However, he is currently on bail subject to conditions.
An analysis by the South China Morning Post says the question is whether Najib, who has served as prime minister for 10 consecutive terms, will be ousted or sidelined. Analysts say the united position of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), his influential political party on Najib, could spark a resurgence of the party and pave the way for an alliance with the current Prime Minister Muhiuddin Yassin.
UMNO has been in power in Malaysia for 61 consecutive years. The country's most powerful political party lost the 2016 election. Pakatan Harapan, an alliance formed by leaders who defected from the UMNO, came to power. Mahathir Mohamad's party was in the Malaysian United Indigenous Party and Anwar Ibrahim's People's Justice Party. Mahathir became the leader and prime minister of the alliance. But when Mahathir resigned in February this year, his party's deputy chief Muhiuddin Talatle Najib formed a new alliance with Najib's party, the UMNO, to become prime minister. The fragile UMNO began to turn around again after Najib's allegations of corruption led to the collapse of the 2016 elections, a leadership crisis, and corruption cases against top leaders, as part of the coalition government. Now the question is whether the party's 39 MPs will support the new alliance.
Analysts believe Tuesday's ruling could spark new tensions within the party. Harrison Cheng, a consultant and political observer at the research firm Control Ricks, said the party had not initially seen a united response for or against Najib's sentencing. As a result, there is a strong party on Najib's side, it cannot be said clearly.
Najib is an elite politician. His father and uncle were prime ministers. His cousin Hishamuddin Hussein, a senior UMNO leader, is currently the foreign minister. Despite being convicted, Najib's acceptance and respect within the party is still high. That is why Lokman Adam and Moha are members of the highest board of the party known as Najib. Puad Jarkashi dismissed the verdict as politically motivated. However, most of the comments of the party leaders are mixed. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, president of Najib's close ally and accuse Najib is an elite politician. His father and uncle were prime ministers. His cousin Hishamuddin Hussein, a senior UMNO leader, is currently the foreign minister. Despite being convicted, Najib's acceptance and respect within the party is still high. That is why Lokman Adam and Moha are members of the highest board of the party known as Najib. Puad Jarkashi dismissed the verdict as politically motivated. However, most of the comments of the party leaders are mixed. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, president of Najib's close ad in the corruption case, called the verdict "sad" in a Facebook post. He called on all to give Najib a chance to get justice in the country's legal process. He also said that his party would take a political decision on the verdict. However, Hishamuddin accepted the court's verdict.
Among others, Khairy Jamaluddin, former head of UMNO's Juba Dal, said that the party should move forward with renewed vigor. After the remarks, Najib said in a Facebook post that he would continue to fight with courage until Pakatan Harapan is destroyed and becomes prime minister. Analysts say pro-Najib lawmakers may now withdraw support from Muhiuddin's government. As a result, Muhiuddin's party may lose its majority in parliament.
Muhiuddin lost the post of then Deputy Prime Minister in 2015 after criticizing Prime Minister Najib over the OneMDB corruption. Later Muhiuddin formed a new party with Mahathir. So Muhiuddin is angry with Najib. Peter Mumford of Eurasia Group, a consulting firm, said Muhiuddin could go to the polls early. If the UMNO goes to the polls as part of the Perikatan alliance, the party will choose Najib instead of Muhiuddin. However, it is true that 35 more cases against Najib are being tried. Maybe he should get into legal trouble.
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