YOURSAY | ‘Ex-PM is a man under siege, and will do anything and everything to keep himself alive.’

Najib's 'I did not lie' prompts more questions

Salam: There are procedures for dealing with "gifts" (which include donations) under the MACC Act 2009 that all public servants (there are no exceptions; even the prime minister, who is the foremost public servant), has to comply with, namely, to declare the “gift” and thereafter to be dealt with transparently in accordance with Finance Ministry (MOF) procedures.

A public servant has to declare gifts above a certain value. So, why didn't former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak do it?

How come MOF gave multiple conflicting updates to Parliament during Question Time (remember the mess they made of the parliamentary updates)?

And finally, if it was a genuine donation, why even return it - clearly, Najib himself understood the impropriety, if not the criminality, of such a huge so-called cash “donation” (RM2.6 billion) and that's why he returned it.

Why return it if the donation was above board, legal and had been dealt with in accordance with government procedures and the law?

Anonymous_1371465729: If the RM2.6 billion were legitimately obtained, it would have been so easy for any common man to prove it, let alone a prime minister.

Instead, there was initial denial and threats to sue, then there were a few spins before coming up with the “donation” nonsense.

To this day, Najib has not produced any evidence to substantiate this donation story; he had merely repeated the lie, as if by saying it often enough, the lie will become a truth.

ABC123: Well said, Malaysiakini columnist R Nadeswaran. At first, he said no money went to him.

Then he said the money went to him but it was a donation to fight the Islamic State. Later, he said it was a donation for GE13. Then he said he assumed it was a donation and he doesn’t know for sure where it was from. Indeed, lies built upon lies.

Malaysia4All: Any one of Nadeswaran’s questions is far too difficult for Najib to answer, without having to come up with more lies to cover his previous lies.

Oh, what a tangled web he has weaved. Can someone please whisper into Najib's ear that the old paradigm of continuing to tell lies after lies, in the hope that the more you tell, the more people will believe you, doesn't work anymore?

Abasir: I, too, have questions for this soiled son of Razak: After receiving what you believed to be "donations" from the Saudi king, did you write him a thank-you note?

Did you direct the Malaysian ambassador to call on the king to convey your gratitude for his generosity?

Are there records of any telephone conversation from you to the king or the Saudi ambassador in Kuala Lumpur acknowledging receipt of the funds in your account?

You lie and lie without batting an eyelid because your entire political life was built on lies.

You are despicable not only for your omissions and commissions but for one other thing - you represent the worst of the New Economic Policy's excesses.

Your father, if he is truly the honourable man he is touted to be, would be ashamed.

Just a Malaysian: It seems like Najib is fighting back by creating an alternative truth.

In his sheltered life, people accept whatever he says without question. But with a court case and paper trail, Najib is facing a real fight for the first time in his life. Only he is too clueless to realise it.

Hamster Huey & The Gooey Kablooie: To me, Najib, after more than 40 years in politics, seems to have mastered the difficult art of creating perception in almost every sentence spoken or printed on every social media network.

Sleepy: "You can fool some people all the time, but not all the people all the time." GE14 took care of the latter. Now, Najib is personally targeting the former, presumably for GE15 or the impending court cases.

Curious Observer: Najib is a man under siege, and in times of desperation, one will do anything and everything to keep himself alive.

The fact is that at this point, only the true-blue hardcore supporters would still swallow his denials.

Almost all right-thinking Malaysians have had enough of his spiels and proclamations of innocence.

We only wish that the legal procedures could be expedited so that we can finally see justice being done.

To win, Umno must oppose Dr M's ‘laissez-faire’ economics – Zaid

Sirach: Whose side is former law minister Zaid Ibrahim on? Reading this, one assumes that it's now on Umno's, which is rather surprising given his past credible and vocal opposition to that party, to the extent of even resigning as law minister in an earlier BN government.

His statement that the Umno's loss in GE14 was due to its economic policies beggars belief. Everyone knows that Najib's loss (and it was Najib's more than Umno's, loss) can be summarised in three words: 1MDB and Mahathir.

Had Najib stepped aside before GE14, then Umno may well have won, perhaps squeaking through.

Zaid may be a good lawyer, but he should stick to what he knows and not make statements about economic policy, which he clearly is no expert in.

And his statements decrying "billionaires and towkays" in the Pakatan Harapan government is presumably a snide swipe at former minister Daim Zainuddin and businessperson Robert Kuok.

He proffers no evidence to support his argument, a remarkable omission for a supposedly experienced attorney. One cannot help but conclude from Zaid's "analysis" that he is peeved at not being considered for a position in the Harapan government.

Roger 5201: Zaid is stating the obvious. Will Malaysia ever return to the days when three out of every 10 Malaysians are disadvantaged so that seven can get a free ride?

Yes, Umno, please tell us how this is sustainable.

L Charlie: I salute Zaid for being a mature politician. What he is offering, rightly or wrongly, is an alternative way for the country. Since the opposition party Umno has lost its marbles, it is good politics to have an opposing opinion within the ruling party.

Please do not label Zaid as being in “la la land” or sour grapes, et cetera, but appreciate his contribution in stimulating our thinking.

There is no 100 percent right or wrong method in politics, only the best possible way at that material time. I may not agree to Zaid's view, but he did provide his argument with reason rather than screaming at the top of his voice like a spoiled child.

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.

These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers on matters of public interest. Malaysiakini does not intend to represent these views as fact.