Malaysia’s official explanation of the $681 million that ended up in PM Najib Razak’s personal bank account — it was an entirely proper gift from friends — has triggered derision and fresh questions in a country already well used to allegations of graft.
On Tuesday, Malaysia’s Najib-appointed attorney-general cleared the premier of wrongdoing in a scandal that has gripped the nation, declaring that the money was a “personal donation” from the Saudi royal family. The announcement capped months of evasion by Najib on the source of the money and apparently laid to rest any threat of prosecution by Malaysian authorities.