Anwar welcomes Najib's apology

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has welcomed his predecessor Najib Abdul Razak’s apology over the 1MDB scandal.

“I welcome it,” he reportedly said when quizzed on the matter after Friday prayers in Putrajaya.

Yesterday, Najib, in a statement read out by his son Nizar at the Kuala Lumpur High Court, apologised that the 1MDB scandal happened during his watch but maintained his innocence.

“It pains me every day to know that the 1MDB debacle happened under my watch as finance minister and prime minister.

“For that, I would like to apologise unreservedly to the nation,” he said.

The former premier also cited an article by The Edge published earlier this month, which showed how fugitive financier Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) and Petrosaudi executives Patrick Mahoney and Tarek Obaid colluded to swindle 1MDB funds.

Najib, who is serving a six-year prison sentence and is embroiled in other legal proceedings related to 1MDB, claimed that the article showed he was duped.

“The Edge reached a conclusion in their article that Petrosaudi and Jho Low collaborated to deceive me, that I was not aware that Petrosaudi was siphoning 1MDB funds, and that I did not knowingly receive any money from the funds sent by 1MDB to Petrosaudi.

“As hard as it is for some people to fathom, I was advised and honestly believe at the time that the funds I received were political donations from Saudi Arabia,” he said.

However, The Edge’s article did not fully exonerate him.

The article concludes that Najib was unaware of the theft of 1MDB funds, but only up to 2010 at least, and regarding the theft of US$1.5 billion from bonds raised in 2009.

The article did not conclude whether or not Najib remained in the dark later on.

Speculation has also been rife that the government’s decision to draft a house arrest bill is related to Najib, whose current prison sentence is over an SRC International case.

Anwar welcomes Najib's apology

COMMENT | Why Najib remains culpable for 1MDB despite apology

COMMENT | Najib's apology might be precursor to house arrest

Najib apologises over 1MDB debacle, but maintains innocence