Most Read
Most Commented
Read more like this
mk-logo
News
Zam: Dr M way too smart to depend on just one source
Published:  Jun 29, 2015 7:00 PM
Updated: 11:13 AM

A former Umno minister has expressed confidence that former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has more sources than whistleblower portal Sarawak Report as well as more 'true secrets' about 1MDB that he will reveal eventually.

"As prime minister for 22 years, everyone, especially those who worked with him (Mahathir) closely, knows that he places greater importance on true facts and will reveal it for the benefit of the country," former information minister Zainuddin Maidin wrote on his blog today.

Zainuddin, popularly known as 'Zam', was referring to those who have tried to use the arrest of former PetroSaudi International (PSI) staff Xavier Andre Justo ( photo ), to absolve government firm 1MDB of any alleged wrongdoings.

Sarawak Report had based its previous articles on the alleged financial irregularities in 1MDB on leaked e-mails which it said it obtained. Justo's arrest last week, say government leaders, now give rise to the possibility that those e-mails were tampered with before being leaked to give a false picture of 1MDB.

Mahathir, meanwhile, has said the tampered e-mails claim was a ruse and the fact 1MDB had yet to be transparent about its massive RM42 billion debt was still the main question.

"It's not smart of the Umno ministers and leaders to react so quickly to say that 1MDB is clean and free from wrongdoings based on just the Sarawak Report article which could have been falsified,"  Zam said.

Admitting that Mahathir also used the same article to criticise 1MDB, he defended the former prime minister by cautioning people to not make the mistake of thinking Mahathir relied only on the Sarawak Report .

Thai silence on 'tampered'

"If Mahathir was criticised for making allegations without waiting for the results of the PAC and auditor-general's investigations (regarding 1MDB), then that is how we should view those who used Justo's arrest (to clear 1MDB's name)," Zainuddin said.

Justo was arrested last Monday by Thailand authorities at the resort island of Koh Samui and charged with allegedly blackmailing his former employer of 2.5 million Swiss francs (RM10 million).

He had allegedly threatened to release confidential information that he had purportedly stolen from the company.

Following this, Putrajaya had claimed that criticisms against 1MDB stemmed from 'tampered' documents by the rogue former employee.

The Thai police, though, have made no mention of any 'tampered' documents.

ADS