Former Malaysian PM Muhyiddin faces bribery charges

Putrajaya – Malaysia’s former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin has been arrested and will face trial on corruption charges, the anti-graft agency said on Thursday.

Muhyiddin, who led Malaysia from March 2020 to August 2021, will become the second country’s leader to be impeached after leaving office. Former Prime Minister Najib Razak faced multiple charges of bribery following his defeat in the 2018 general election and began serving a 12-year sentence in August after losing his final appeal in the first of several trials.

The anti-graft agency said Muhyiddin faces multiple charges on Friday over alleged abuse and money laundering related to government projects contracted under his rule.

Muhyiddin, 75, went to the anti-transplant agency early Thursday to answer questions for the second time in three weeks. He was first asked in February about the awarding of projects, including COVID-19 economic aid programs.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who came to power after November’s parliamentary elections, had ordered a review of government projects approved by previous governments for allegedly not following the rules.

Two senior leaders of Muhyiddin’s Bersatu party were also recently charged with bribery. The Anti-Graft Agency froze Bersatu’s bank accounts for investigations into alleged illegal procedures.

Muhyiddin, who leads a heavily Islam-dominated opposition, has denied any wrongdoing and accused Anwar’s government of trying to crush the opposition ahead of the state elections.