Calls for PM’s resignation over 1MDB scandal

Pressure is mounting on Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak after calls for his resignation over allegations that $1bn was siphoned from Malaysia’s state-owned 1MDB investment fund to purchase luxury properties, works of art and a business jet. Lawsuits were filed on Wednesday in California by the US Justice Department to seize assets “involved in and […]

Pressure is mounting on Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak after calls for his resignation over allegations that $1bn was siphoned from Malaysia’s state-owned 1MDB investment fund to purchase luxury properties, works of art and a business jet.
Lawsuits were filed on Wednesday in California by the US Justice Department to seize assets “involved in and traceable to an international conspiracy to launder money misappropriated from 1MDB” over a four-year period.
Among the assets purchased were works of art valued at $137 million, including a $35 million painting by Claude Monet, US Attorney and California Chief Prosecutor Eileen Decker said.
“I suggest the people push for a referendum on the prime minister’s leadership,” Malaysia’s former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Thursday.
Malaysians should have a “peaceful rally” to demand Najib’s removal from office over the affair, he said.