Former Malaysian PM Muhyiddin to be charged with corruption on Mar 10

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin will be charged with corruption on Friday (Mar 10).

In a statement issued on Thursday, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said that Mr Muhyiddin was detained at 1pm at its headquarters after he was summoned to give his statement in connection to investigations into the Jana Wibawa programme.

MACC added that it has gotten approval from the Attorney-General’s Chambers to charge Mr Muhyiddin at Kuala Lumpur Courthouse on Friday.

It added that the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) president will be charged with several counts of corruption as well as money laundering. Mr Muhyiddin has since been released on conditional bail.

The Jana Wibawa programme was an economic generation project during Malaysia’s COVID-19 movement control order.

It was a stimulus aid package that was meant to help Bumiputera contractors.

The MACC had been investigating allegations that the chosen contractors for the aid programme had deposited RM300 million (US$67.69 million) into Bersatu’s account.

Speculation was rife earlier this week that Mr Muhyiddin will be arrested by the authorities over the stimulus aid programme.

This comes after two members of Bersatu have claimed trial in connection to the Jana Wibawa case - Tasek Gelugor Member of Parliament Wan Saiful Wan Jan as well as businessman and Segambut Bersatu division deputy chief Adam Radlan Adam Muhammad.

Separately, another man has been charged for accusing the MACC of offering RM10 million to Wan Saiful to implicate Mr Muhyiddin in the Jana Wibawa case.

Bersatu treasurer Mohd Salleh Bajuri was also previously remanded by the anti-graft agency following its investigations into the party’s bank accounts.

Last month, Malaysia’s International Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz was summoned by MACC to help with investigations into the Jana Wibawa programme.

Calls for an official investigation into the stimulus spending during the pandemic grew due to perceptions that Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition had run a well-funded election campaign leading up to the 15th General Elections on Nov 19 last year.

The probe into Jana Wibawa began after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim found in his capacity as finance minister that high-expenditure projects such as Jana Wibawa did not go through a tender process.

Several bank accounts belonging to Bersatu are currently frozen by MACC.

On Thursday evening, Mr Muhyiddin told reporters that there were instructions by the top echelons of the current government to charge him in court. He also said that he would face seven charges in court and claimed that they were meant to embarrass him.

"This selective persecution of me is a malicious political act carried out by Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional solely to paralyse and destroy Bersatu," he said.

He claimed that Mr Anwar was aware that PN enjoyed solid support from the people and the latter would win big in the upcoming elections to be held in six states. 

"I would like to stress that I am innocent and will answer all the charges in court.”