KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 11 — The government must explain why it has chosen to answer parliamentary questions on the RM2.6 billion donation transferred to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal bank account only on December 3 and not sooner, the DAP said today.
DAP vice-chairman Teresa Kok also said that Najib himself should be the one addressing the queries in Parliament, citing concerns that the government has given no commitment that the PM would be the one answering the questions.
“Why must the reply be on December 3? Why is there no commitment that the Prime Minister will be doing the reply?” Kok said in a statement today.
She said that any responsible government would have ensured that any doubts surrounding the controversial RM2.6 billion were immediately alleviated by providing full and satisfactory answers to Malaysians.
“Parliament is the highest legislative and political chamber in the land, and the government must show its respect for parliament by providing full, immediate and satisfactory answers to the MPs.
“When Parliament resumes on November 16 after the Deepavali break, it will be the last day of the three day ministerial winding up of the 2016 Budget debate. This is the day that Najib should be in Parliament to answer the questions and issues,” the Seputeh MP said.
The Najib administration has promised to answer all questions surrounding the RM2.6 billion donation channelled directly into Najib’s personal bank account on December 3, the last day of the current Dewan Rakyat session.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has said all questions on the issue will be dealt with in “one go.”
The de facto parliamentary affairs minister said any minister from the Prime Minister’s Department can reply to questions from MPs on the controversy.
However, she added that it will be up to Najib to attend the Dewan Rakyat meeting on that day to personally answer the questions raised.
Najib is currently facing pressure over a number of controversies, chiefly that surrounding 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and the RM2.6 billion donation he received in his bank account.
The opposition MPs are bent on using the issues to seek a no confidence vote against the prime minister in Parliament.
The RM2.6 billion figure first surfaced through a US-based paper Wall Street Journal’s report in July on the purported discovery by government investigators of a money trail with that amount ending in Najib’s accounts.
Najib has said that he has not taken public funds for personal gain, but the RM2.6 billion controversy has remained the centre of media and public attention.
The RM2.6 billion was later declared to be a donation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) from Middle Eastern donors whose identities were not revealed, however.
