The eight Prime Minister to serve Malaysia, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, has officially been charged earlier today with four counts of abuse of power in connection with his involvement in the Jana Wibawa Covid-19 stimulus package initiative, in addition to two counts of money laundering at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court according to Reuters.
This will make him the second premier in the nation’s history to stand trial against accusations of embezzlement and bribery, following Najib’s arrest and eventual imprisonment.
Muhyiddin charged with four counts of abuse of power
Muhyiddin, who currently serves as Pagoh’s Member of Parliament, was slapped with four counts of abuse of power framed under Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act for allegedly soliciting gratuities amounting to RM232.5 million from the Jana Wibawa initiative that was channeled towards his party, Bersatu.
All four charges were said to have occurred at the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya between February 9th, 2021 to August 20th, 2021. FMT reports that the political veteran was accused of using his office to obtain a RM200,000 bribe from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, in the first charge.
The second charge accused him of allegedly receiving RM1 million in bribes from Nepturis Sdn Bhd for his party. As for the third and fourth charge, he is said to have received RM19.5 million from Mamfor Sdn Bhd and RM12 million from businessman Azman Yusoff respectively.
Should he be found guilty of the charge, Muhyiddin may face upwards of 20 years in prison a fine of not less than five times the sum or value of the gratification received under the offense, or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
Also slapped with an additional two counts of money laundering
As for the money laundering charges, they are framed under Section 4(1)(b) of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Illegal Activities Act (AMLATFPUAA) 2001.
In this regard, Muhyiddin is accused of receiving RM120 million and RM75 million from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, amounts which are believed to have been derived from illegal activities, at CIMB Bank, Jalan Stesen Sentral between February 25th, 2021 to July 8th, 2022.
Upon conviction, he faces jail time of up to 15 years and a fine of no less than five times the amount of gratification or RM10,000, or whichever is higher.
Muhyiddin has pleaded not guilty to all charges. As reported by Utusan Malaysia, he has since been released on RM2 million bail with two sureties, and has had his passport impounded. The case will be mentioned on May 26th.
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