KUALA LUMPUR: There is no pressure by any party to stop Datuk Seri Najib Razak's ongoing corruption trial, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The Prime Minister, in an interview with Al Jazeera's Sami Zeidan, said he had not been pressured to interfere in the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) case, despite Umno being part of the unity government,
"Najib is still undergoing a major trial now on corruption charges. (Part of the unity government) coalition is from his party, but there is no pressure on me to stop the trial of the ongoing case."
Anwar said this on 'Talk To Al Jazeera', which was aired earlier this morning.
During the interview, he was asked to respond to criticisms that his government's economic and democratic reforms had slowed down, and since taking office, had prioritised stabilising the coalition over investigating powerful people for corruption.
He said it was not acceptable to correct "decades of excesses" in just a year and a half of being in power.
"We have seen attempts in the past, even in Eastern Europe, where countries were gung ho about affecting quick reforms, ending up being disastrous to the economy and the political setup.
"In our case, contrary to these aspersions by the opposition, what's most important is governance.
"What we have been successful in is to check the abuse by leaders and cabinet members from squandering wealth through direct negotiations, massive billions of dollars in tender. We have stopped that," he said.
On Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) verdict last year, Anwar said it was for the attorney-general to explain.
He also said it was up to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to proceed with any investigations if anyone was found to amass billions while in power, regardless if they were part of the government or opposition.
"(Former prime minister) Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad supports the opposition and (former finance minister) Tun Daim Zainuddin seems to be quite neutral, but there has been an investigation by the MACC that billions have been amassed.
"It is up to them to investigate, and for the A-G to charge if he finds conclusive evidence for the judiciary to then adjudicate and decide. It's not for me.
"The problem is that I inherited a system which was authoritarian and semi-dictatorial, and controlled the judiciary, the prosecution and the investigation when they assumed this position."
