Former minister Zaid Ibrahim said his attempt to get a court order to reveal Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's bank accounts statements was to help the latter clear his name.

Zaid said this in response to the argument by Najib's lawyer, Mohd Hafarizam Harun, in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur yesterday that doing so would be "gravely prejudicial" to the prime minister.

"The Prime Minister’s Office should be sensible enough to know that what I am doing is actually going to clear the prime minister’s name.

"Getting his bank statements out in the open will clearly show the truth of the allegations that have been made against him.

"When we have sight of the accounts, the whole matter can be resolved quickly, after which we can move on to talking about an alcohol ban, TN50 or whatever else is important for the country.

"How can such a disclosure be deemed prejudicial?" Zaid asked in a posting on his blog today.

The bank accounts of Najib that Zaid is seeking disclosure on are reported to have received funds from state-owned SRC International Sdn Bhd.

A document held up by attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali at a press conference in January last year showed at least RM32 million went into the prime minister's account from SRC International.

Apandi cleared Najib of wrongdoing on the grounds that the prime minister was not aware of receiving the money.