KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 3): Malaysia’s Transport Minister Anthony Loke maintained his decision to step down once home confinement for former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak begins, Nikkei Asia reported on Tuesday.
However, the start of the house arrest will depend on how fast Najib can raise RM50 million to pay the court-imposed fine and fulfil “other technicalities”, the Japanese financial newspaper quoted Loke as saying. His departure will not affect projects under his ministry, he told Nikkei Asia.
"The projects are all locked in and there are enough safeguards in place," Loke was cited as saying in an interview.
Loke submitted his resignation on Sept 28 in protest over the Pardons Board's decision to allow Najib, who was twice convicted of grand corruption, to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.
His ministry oversees projects including the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) that costs some RM75 billion and the Rapid Transit System (RTS), a key link between Johor Bahru and Singapore.
"The RTS and ECRL are almost complete and will be operational in the next few months. They will not be affected by any changes of leadership (in the ministry)," Loke was quoted as saying by Nikkei Asia.
DAP, led by Loke as its secretary general, has been one of the staunchest critics of Najib, who has been imprisoned since August 2022.
The party holds the largest number of federal seats in the Anwar administration and has pledged to support the current government until the end of the current parliamentary term in December 2027.
Najib’s original sentence over the theft of RM42 million that belonged to SRC International Sdn Bhd was for 12 years in jail and a RM210 million fine, before the punishment was lessened in 2024 by the previous King Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
Najib had also been found guilty in a separate 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) case and was sentenced to 15 years in jail that will run after he finishes serving time for the SRC conviction. The 1MDB case is now on appeal. He also has numerous ongoing civil cases.