What goes into Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's private bank accounts is not the business of sacked deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, says Department of Special Affairs (Jasa) adviser Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz.
This was after it was revealed in a leaked video clip that Muhyiddin had confronted Najib about the RM2.6 billion deposited into the prime minister's personal bank accounts.
"Money that goes into private accounts, that is the right and privacy of the individual and does not need to be announced to the public.
"It's the same when money is deposited into our own private accounts," Tun Faisal ( photo ) said in a blog posting today.
The former Umno Youth exco member added that it would only be an issue if the money came from an illegal source. Only then would it be necessary for the money to be declared to investigators.
In the video recording, Muhyiddin said Najib admitted that the money went into his account and that it came from the Middle East.
"When there are quarters that want to contribute a sum of money to someone's private account as political donation, then it belongs to the individual.
"It is up to the individual on how to use the money, as long as it is not for illegal purposes as it is a private donation.
"Whether it is used to help people or to fund (campaign) machinery, that is their right," Tun Faisal said.
'No evidence money came from state funds'
Furthermore, he said, there was no evidence that the money received by Najib came from state funds.
"In the case of Najib's private accounts, the money is said to be from 1MDB and the joint venture with PetroSaudi.
"Investigators can refer to the account statement and documents from 1MDB and PetroSaudi on whether it is true these were the sourses of funds that went into Najib's private accounts or not.
"Thus far, the audited financial statement does not show the money came from them," Tun Faisal said.
He added that it was anybody's right to give Najib a financial helping hand.
"Anyone can make financial contributions to help Najib and the party.
"If they want to use the fund to help the party, it will be deposited into the party's account or organisations related to the party.
"But if they want to help an individual by the name of Najib Razak, then that is their right to make that choice," Tun Faisal said.
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