ON Aug 23, 2022, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was handed a 12-year jail sentence for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering of SRC International funds amounting to RM42 mil. He was also fined RM210 mil.
On Sept 2, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, was found guilty of soliciting RM187.5 mil and receiving RM6.5 mil in bribes from a company trying to secure an RM1.25 bil solar hybrid project that would provide electricity for 369 schools in rural Sarawak.
She was sentenced to 10 years in jail and ordered to pay a fine of RM970 mil.
Najib’s sentencing sends a strong message: no matter how high an office you have attained, you are not above the law.
Post-verdict, however, there have been attempts to whitewash the duo’s crimes and paint Najib as a falsely accused martyr along the likes of Nelson Mandela.
An example is the criminal couple’s daughter’s self-professed feelings of guilt while grocery shopping because her father couldn’t get his favourite Starbucks caramel macchiato in Kajang Prison.
Nooryana Najwa Najib also used her son to garner pity on Instagram.
Instead of posting sob stories, perhaps she should pay her taxes of RM10.3 mil.
“Najib is more Marcos than Mandela”
The 2022 Philippines election provides some stark lessons for Malaysia; Najib is no Mandela, but Ferdinand Marcos, the former Philippines president.
Some parallels are obvious: Rosmah really liked her Birkin bags, while Imelda Marcos splurged on shoes.
A 2004 Transparency International (TI) report estimated the Marcos’ corruption at US$5 bil to US$10 bil (approximately RM22 bil to RM44 bil).
Other parallels are more insidious: both Najib and Marcos were dictators.
Marcos’ declaration of martial law began in 1972 and was formally lifted in January 1981. Human rights groups such as Amnesty International reported 3,257 known extrajudicial killings, 35,000 documented tortures and 70,000 incarcerations, among others.
Najib’s dictatorial tendencies were subtler. He pushed for the 2015 National Security Council (NSC) Bill, which gave the prime minister sweeping power to designate “security areas”; in those areas, authorities like the police and armed forces could search and arrest without needing a warrant.
The Bill also disposed of the need for inquests into extrajudicial killings.
We must never forget several killings which had some form of relation to Najib’s corruption cases: Altantuya Shaariibuu (2006), Ambank founder Hussain Najadi (2013) and deputy public prosecutor Datuk Anthony Kevin Morais (2015).
During Najib’s term, there were also enforced disappearances, namely of Amri Che Mat, Pastor Joshua Hilmy and his wife Ruth Sitepu (2016) and Pastor Raymond Koh (2017).
Najib also curtailed press freedom, targeting news portals covering the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.
In 2014, The Malaysian Insider (TMI) was forced to close after the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) blocked local access to its site. In 2015, the MCMC blocked Sarawak Report and Medium, a publishing/blogging platform.
Officials from the Royal Malaysian Police Force (PDRM) and MCMC had also raided Malaysiakini’s office and seized property after the news portal published an article about a public prosecutor’s sudden transfer from a unit probing 1MDB allegations.
Beware whitewashing and historical revisionism
Despite the horrors of Marcos’ dictatorship, his son Bongbong scored a landslide victory to become the 17th president of the Philippines.
His victory was driven by a well-oiled social media machine amidst public dissatisfaction with previous Governments.
Freshly made Twitter accounts operated as a network, amplifying pro-Marcos messages and attacking critics, while TikTok videos targeted voters under 40 years old, who form approximately 56% of the 65.7 mil electorate and had little or no memory of Marcos Senior’s era.
Bongbong embarked on historical revisionism and whitewashing, portraying the martial law era as a golden, crime-free period while staying silent on the violence perpetrated against Filipinos.
Similarly, Najib has rehabilitated his image using social media.
In January 2019, pro-Najib cyber troopers launched the Malu Apa Bossku? campaign. His team has created a more down-to-earth, influencer-like persona who generates buzz on Facebook and Twitter while denying involvement in the 1MDB and SRC International scandals.
However, some saw through the smokescreen: while Najib trolled the opposition and sometimes his own people on social media, he was quiet as a mouse in Parliament.
Retaking the narrative
After the Sheraton Move, endless political turbulence and the stresses of COVID-19, the abuses during Najib’s time feel like a hazy memory.
Najib’s jailing is, thus, a wake-up call: tackling corruption is necessary for righting socio-economic injustices so that funds for the people directly benefit the people, like the 369 schools in rural Sarawak awaiting electricity.
Going forward, know that Najib’s propaganda machine will continue spreading disinformation as he files for his royal pardon.
Malaysians must be vigilant and fight disinformation among our communities. Be cautious, verify the information before sharing and report fake accounts and bots that try to paint Najib as falsely accused.
Second, expect more racial and religious rhetoric to distract us from Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Barisan Nasional (BN)’s infighting and their bloated Cabinet’s failure to govern.
Malaysians wanting a better future must stand together and resist attempts to stir up racial or religious tensions as the 15th General Elections (GE15) approaches.
This is a class war: the people against the morally compromised elite.
They say that history is written by the victors. On Aug 23 and Sept 2, 2022, the people won.
Those who cast their votes for Pakatan Harapan (Pakatan) on May 9, 2018: know that your votes made a difference; Najib’s cases were opened and the courts eventually delivered justice.
With the anti-hopping law in place, come GE15, your vote matters.
As Nelson Mandela said, “May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” – Sept 6, 2022
Lim Yi Wei is the DAP assemblywoman for Kampung Tunku and DAP Socialist Youth (DAPSY) international secretary.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Main pic credit: Whale Hunting
