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Kamis, 25 Agustus 2022

Malaysia's Mahathir says 'highly likely' jailed Najib will get royal pardon - Reuters

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Malaysia's veteran two-time leader Mahathir Mohamad said on Thursday that disgraced former premier Najib Razak, who he helped bring down, was likely to win a royal pardon and be freed from a 12-year jail sentence for graft that he began this week.

Mahathir, whose historic election victory in 2018 triggered Najib's downfall, said delays in various trials related to the multi-billion-dollar corruption scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) would result in justice being denied.

The palace of King Al-Sultan Abdullah, which received a petition for a pardon from Najib loyalists a day earlier, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mahathir's remark.

On Tuesday, the country's top court rejected Najib's final appeal against a 2020 conviction by a lower court, and upheld the 12-year jail sentence and a 210 million ringgit ($46.88 million) fine for illegally receiving $10 million from a unit of 1MDB. read more

"For Najib, it is highly likely that he will be pardoned after being imprisoned," the 97-year-old Mahathir said in a statement. He did not elaborate.

Najib is believed to be close to some of Malaysia's royals, and in May, Najib's social media posts showed him attending Eid celebrations with the king.

But, there has been no indication so far on how the palace would respond to any pardon application by Najib, who held power for nine years until 2018.

Nor has there been any sign yet of how Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob would regard a pardon for his old party leader, as he seeks to rehabilitate the image of the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).

Having been sent to jail on Tuesday after losing the appeal in one of the smaller cases related to the siphoning off of money from the state fund he co-founded in 2009, Najib was back in court on Thursday for a hearing in the largest case.

He was brought from the Kajang prison complex southeast of the capital to the Kuala Lumpur high court in a black police car under heavy security and was taken to the courtroom through a private entrance.

At the end of the day's hearing, Najib - in a dark suit and tie - waved to reporters from the police car on his way back to Kajang. He did not comment, but an aide to the former premier said he was "doing OK."

In a social media post, Najib's daughter Nooryana Najwa said he had been provided with basic necessities in prison, and "was getting used to his new routine."

The charges laid against Najib in this case include 21 counts of money laundering and four counts of abuse of power for allegedly receiving illegal transfers of at least 2.3 billion ringgit ($512.93 million) between 2011 and 2014.

Najib also faces three other cases, and they all carry jail terms and heavy financial penalties.

Malaysian and U.S. investigators say $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB, in a scandal that has implicated financial institutions and high-ranking officials worldwide. Over $1 billion was traced to Najib's bank accounts.

The former prime minister also faces bankruptcy, which cannot be pardoned and which would prevent him from running for elections.

Najib has denied any wrongdoing, and has painted himself as the victim of a political vendetta by his former mentor.

Mahathir was already Malaysia's longest serving prime minister when he first retired in 2003 after 22 years at the helm. He campaigned for Najib and UMNO during the 2013 election but turned against his protege as the scale of corruption at 1MDB began to emerge.

Leading an opposition alliance of unlikely bedfellows, the nonagenarian Mahathir defeated the UMNO-led coalition, removing it from power for the first time since the formation of Malaysia six decades earlier.

Reinstalled as prime minister, Mahathir reopened probes into 1MDB that led to Najib facing a total of 42 charges. Mahathir subsequently resigned amid political turmoil as his alliance fell apart.

($1 = 4.4800 ringgit)

Reporting by Rozanna Latiff and A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2022-08-25 09:14:00Z
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Rabu, 24 Agustus 2022

Thailand approves first instant noodle price rise in 14 years - CNA

"We are facing rising commodity prices, oil prices for export," explained Veera Naphaprukchart from Thai Preserved Food, part of popular brand Wai Wai.

The price of wheat flour rose roughly 20 per cent to 30 per cent and the price of palm oil had doubled, he said.

Veera blamed rising costs on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which was a major supplier of wheat to the kingdom prior to the conflict.

Pipat Paniangvait, of Thai President Food, said the price of instant noodles was last increased in 2008.

Producers' issues have been compounded by the high export costs - thanks to rising oil and wheat prices - meaning selling abroad is not viable either.

"In the past, we were selling more outside Thailand to curb the situation here as we can not raise the price freely," he said.

The trade department said it would continue to monitor the cost of production and indicated it could adjust the price accordingly.

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2022-08-24 13:35:00Z
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Malaysian ex-PM Najib goes to jail for graft after losing final appeal - Reuters

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Malaysia's top court ordered former prime minister Najib Razak to begin a 12-year prison sentence on Tuesday after upholding a guilty conviction on charges related to a multi-billion dollar graft scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

The Federal Court ruling caps the stunning downfall of Najib, who until four years ago governed Malaysia with an iron grip and suppressed local investigations of the 1MDB scandal that has implicated financial institutions and high-ranking officials worldwide.

Investigators have said some $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB - co-founded by Najib during his first year as prime minister in 2009 - and that over $1 billion went to accounts linked to Najib.

Najib, wearing a dark suit and tie, sat in the dock as the verdict was read out. His wife, Rosmah Mansor, who is also facing corruption charges, and three children were seated behind him.

Security officials then gathered around the bespectacled former premier and he was later seen leaving court in a black car with police escort.

A court official and sources close to Najib said he was taken to Kajang Prison, about 40 km away from capital Kuala Lumpur.

"This is unprecedented. Najib will be remembered for his many firsts, the first prime minister to lose a general election, the first to be convicted," said Adib Zalkapli, Director at political risk consultancy BowerGroupAsia.

The British-educated son of Malay nobility held the premiership from 2009 to 2018, when public anger over the graft scandal brought election defeat, and dozens of corruption charges were lodged in following months.

Najib, 69, was found guilty by a lower court in July 2020 of criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering for illegally receiving about $10 million from SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB. He had been out on bail pending appeals.

The former premier, who had pleaded not guilty, was sentenced to 12 years' jail and a 210 million ringgit ($46.84 million) fine.

The wide-ranging 1MDB scandal prompted the U.S. Department of Justice to open what became its biggest kleptocracy investigation.

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said the verdict proved the power of the people.

"The people made the decision in 2018 to ensure an independent judiciary and that the country is clean of bribery. That decision allowed proceedings to be brought professionally," he said.

LUXURY ASSETS

Various recipients of the siphoned 1MDB funds, including a fugitive financier named Jho Low, used the money to buy luxury assets and real estate, a Picasso painting, a private jet, a superyacht, hotels, jewellery, and to finance the 2013 Hollywood film "The Wolf of Wall Street", U.S. lawsuits have said.

Knocking back Najib's final appeal, the court also denied his request for a stay of sentence.

"The defence is so inherently inconsistent and incredible that it has not raised reasonable doubt on the case... We also find that the sentence imposed is not manifestly excessive," Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat said.

The panel of judges had unanimously dismissed Najib's appeals, she said.

The court had earlier rejected a last gasp effort by Najib to forestall the final verdict by requesting the removal of the chief justice from the panel.

Addressing the court moments before the final verdict was delivered, Najib said he was the victim of injustice.

"It's the worst feeling to have to realise that the might of the judiciary is pinned against me in the most unfair manner," Najib told the court.

Najib, who faces several more trials over the allegations, has consistently denied wrongdoing.

He could apply for a review of the Federal Court decision, though such applications are rarely successful. He can also seek a pardon from the king. If successful, he could be released without serving the full 12-year term.

But the conviction means Najib will lose his parliamentary seat and cannot contest elections.

While Najib still has supporters among his base, many ordinary Malaysians welcomed the court decision.

"He did a lot of things wrong for this country when he’s supposed to be responsible for our nation. He’s supposed to bring in money but instead he robbed money," said tennis coach Farhan Raj, adding he was "very very happy" with the judgement.

Reporting by Rozanna Latiff, Zahra Matarani, Hasnoor Hussain, Ebrahim Harris and Fadza Ishak; Writing by A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Nick Macfie

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2022-08-23 16:52:00Z
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Selasa, 23 Agustus 2022