Malaysians left incredulous by apology from disgraced ex-PM Najib

A public apology by disgraced former prime minister Najib Razak for the ruinous 1MDB scandal has been met with scorn by Malaysians, as speculation mounts over a possible attempt to secure his early release from jail.

Through his lawyers, Najib on Thursday issued an apology for the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, saying it pained him “every day” that the plunder of billions of dollars of taxpayers’ cash happened under his watch.

The jailed former leader “unreservedly” apologised for the scandal, but maintained that he “did not initiate or knowingly enable” the hollowing out of a fund he originated and signed off on in his dual role as finance minister.

In a brief doorstop after Friday prayers, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told reporters that Najib’s apology was “well received”.

Najib began a 12-year jail sentence in August 2022, after exhausting his final attempt at overturning his conviction for corruption and abuse of power linked to a former unit of 1MDB.

His apology, however, did not go down well with many Malaysians, who see Najib as a key actor as well as beneficiary of the looting of what US and Malaysian investigators say was an estimated US$4.5 billion from 1MDB.