Malaysians to rally against prime minister, demand resignation

A Malaysian pro-democracy group says it will proceed with its planned rally against Prime Minister Najib Razak, whom it accuses of “grand corruption” in spite of efforts to stop it.

Maria Abdullah chairwoman of Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, known as Bersih 2.0, told newsmen that Bersih 5 is on.

“All preparations are on schedule,’’ Abdullah said.

The Malaysian High Court on Thursday dismissed a last-minute injunction against the Bersih rally and a counter rally filed by three trader associations, who said the demonstrations would harm their businesses.

Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Hamidi, who also serves as home affairs minister, said that leaders of both rallies would face action if they went ahead with them.

Najib said he was unfazed by the protest, adding that he would “accept and respect the will of the people only when the general election is called.’’

Bersih staged similar rallies in August 2015, one of which it said attracted half a million people, demanding institutional reforms and the premier’s resignation.

Najib has been at the centre of a corruption scandal since July 2015.

A report from a Wall Street Journal suggested that 673 million dollars in his personal bank accounts had been siphoned off from the beleaguered 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state fund.