Malaysia police to probe alleged plot to oust PM

Malaysia’s national police chief has announced plans to probe an alleged plot to depose the country’s Prime Minister Najib Razak amid a developing scandal over his finances.

Malaysian Inspector General Khalid Abu Bakar said on Monday that at least three police reports have so far been filed about the alleged scheme, prompting law enforcement authorities to launch an investigation into the case.

The announcement comes as Najib is facing his worst political quandary since rising to power following revelations that he possesses hundreds of millions of dollars in his bank accounts.

The development came a day after Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that he had been informed of a joint plot by a senior official of the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) along with the opposition to topple the premier.

UMNO has yet to comment on this report.

This is while a number of UMNO members, including former long-term Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and deposed Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, have harshly censured Najib’s government for failing to offer convincing details about the more than 670 million dollars discovered in prime minister’s bank accounts.

Khalid, meanwhile, underlined that police authorities will take action if they find that any unconstitutional conduct has been carried out against Najib.

The current scandal involving Malaysia’s top executive hit the headlines in early July following a report by the US-based Wall Street Journal suggesting that the money in Najib’s accounts came from a state development fund.