KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 — Bank Negara Malaysia must explain to the public if the deposit of RM2.6 billion into Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s accounts was done according to banking laws, two DAP lawmakers said today.

Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng and Rasah MP Teo Kok Seong today submitted a letter asking the central bank to clarify if the transaction complied with the Financial Services Act 2013 and the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFA).

“As lawmakers ourselves, we have seen the passing of the Financial Services Act as well as the amendments to the anti-money laundering Act,” Lim said after the memorandum was received by BNM deputy strategic communications director Lee Poh Fong.

“There are quite a few strict requirements under these two Acts, so we want Bank Negara to disclose whether the RM2.6 billion went in and out of Najib’s accounts while complying with these Acts.”

He added that Bank Negara must disclose what happened to the money and whether Najib had informed Bank Negara of the transaction.

In response to Youth and Sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin stating yesterday that there were no laws against political donations, Teo said the prime minister still holds the responsibility as a public servant to clarify the source and use of the RM2.6 billion.

“As mentioned before, civil servants cannot accept any gratification from any party. So in this issue, the prime minister has the responsibility to answer the questions of the people: where did this RM2.6 billion come from and where did it go?” he said.

“It is not a small amount. My MP seat is in Negeri Sembilan, and so is Khairy’s. For your information, the annual state budget for Negeri Sembilan is only RM400 million. RM2.6 billion can support the state for 6.5 years.”

Also with Lim and Teo to hand in the letter was lawyer and fellow DAP member Zulhazmi Shariff who said BNM had special measures in place to detect the legitimacy of large transfers and that the sum should have triggered an alert.

“It is not within BNM’s power to investigate, but BNM is supposed to alert and inform the appropriate authorities like MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) or the police,” Zulhazmi said.

“Right now, what we are asking BNM is whether the transaction triggered an alarm when RM2.6 billion entered Najib’s account. Did they inform the appropriate authorities?” he added.

Following allegations that RM2.6 billion had been channelled from state-owned fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), the MACC announced its findings on Tuesday, declaring the money transferred to Najib’s personal account was a donation.

The MACC however, did not specifying who the donors were or how the money was spent.