Malaysia has been jolted by two days of protests calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Razak over a corruption scandal. Although the rally has been mostly-incident free, it has brought to the open the pent up frustration of the people who are demanding transparency in government dealings.
Najib is under fire after a report published documents showing nearly $700 million (Dh2.57 billion) had been deposited into his personal accounts in 2013. His cabinet colleagues have called the transfers ‘political donations’, the accounts have been closed and the fate of the money is undisclosed. The prime minister has denied all wrongdoing and has alleged a political conspiracy to topple him. He has sacked four ministers, his attorney-general and deputy prime minister in an attempt to disarm his critics. But the presence of Najib’s mentor and former prime minister Mahathir Mohammad at the rally seemed to give a boost to the protesters. It is the government’s duty in any country to fight corruption and when the people demand transparency in its proceedings, the government must comply. If the prime minister wants to continue to steer the government, he must win back the support of the people.
