YOURSAY | ‘Zeti’s statement implied that 1MDB has committed wrongdoing but…’

Zeti: Bank Negara could only impose the highest fine on 1MDB

Clever Voter: Former Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz is right. BNM does not have the power to prosecute but it could have done more.

Bank Negara does not compromise as regulator of the financial industry. But it does not impose the same standard when it comes to the government.

By choosing to remain silent, Zeti does no one any favour. Imagine if these culprits had been foreigners, BNM’s position would be different. That's Malaysia for you.

Voice: Zeti’s statement implies that 1MDB has committed wrongdoing and therefore it could face prosecution.

But BNM could only instead issue the highest administrative fine, and is always ready to provide assistance to any institution or agency that can do the prosecution.

But has it, BNM, done it (assisted the prosecutors) and why did the attorney-general (AG) say there was no wrongdoing? So, who is telling a lie, Zeti or the attorney-general (AG)?

Budak SRJK (T): Zeti, you have many questions to answer. First and foremost, did you investigate the ‘681 American pies’ that were transferred into the personal account of MO1 (Malaysian Official 1) in March 2013, allegedly from an offshore account owned by Tanore Corporation, a shady shell company incorporated in the Seychelles?

If you did, what was the outcome of the investigation, and what action, had it been necessary, did you take?

Secondly, did you investigate the US$620 million that was allegedly transferred back to the account of Tanore Corporation in August 2013? If you did, what was the outcome of the investigation and what action, had it been necessary, did you take?

There are many more questions for you, but please answer these two first.

Anonymous 2460391489930458: Zeti, this is a lame excuse for not doing what you were supposed and empowered to do when you were BNM governor.

Be honest and tell us: did you sufficiently discharge your duties when 1MDB channelled billions of ringgit into bogus offshore accounts?

Were you not empowered to, at least, scrutinise such massive outflows which I imagine would have triggered quite a few alarm bells within the financial system?

Those were the basic things you could have done as BNM governor, instead of acting as a rubber stamp for the Najib Razak government. The lack of prosecutorial power is no excuse for not performing your regulatory duties.

Legit: You claimed ignorance as to the existence of documents on the movement of these funds. You claim you and the Bank Negara staff were focused on your job, yet you allowed all the shenanigans to happen under your watch.

The list just goes on and on. For a person who has been voted one of the best central bank governors, you are a total disappointment, Zeti.

KJ John: Are you saying that there was no theft of public funds? Did not BNM discover illegal funds in the bank account? Do you only fine the bank and not the individual? Did you report to IRB (Inland Revenue Board) about such "money laundering?"

Why do you choose to speak up only now, but still speak like a BNM crony?

Vijay47: Zeti, I am ashamed of you. One would have thought that in hindsight, with the wisdom of age, you would have at least now taken a stand of honour to protect the office once thrust upon you, if not your own reputation.

Instead, you make one of those feeble, humiliating excuses that we would expect of Umno leaders. Have you forgotten so fast that the post of governor of Bank Negara serves a higher purpose, where the nation comes before all else?

I cannot believe that you would actually quote the imposition of just a miserable fine as a reflection of the balance and firmness expected of an investigation into Malaysia’s biggest scandals and shames.

You imposed a fine on the institution of 1MDB, yet you let the perpetrators go free. Is that the whole of your concept of unbiased justice for king and country?

But sadly, you even disregarded the fact that you were governor and that PM Najib Razak and all his henchman could do nothing to you. And to think you and I wore the same school badge.

What have you indeed achieved, Zeti? In the end, when history is being written, when Malaysians are judged, you will appear on the same page as AG Mohamed Apandi Ali, inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar, DPM Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Najib.

Is that what you devoted your efforts to?

Godfearing: What an indelible stigma! Failing to act professionally with no conscience, because of fear or favour, is not just incompetence but much worse, a breach of trust endowed by the nation, which is tantamount to treason.

What a legacy at the end of an otherwise illustrious career. What a shame!

Headhunter: Sad to say, her reputation, which was quite formidable prior to the 1MDB debacle, was badly damaged by the turn of events, a curse that had befallen so many others.

I can't really blame her because the whole country is afflicted by it, all because of one man.

Anonymous 2436471476414726: In Singapore, Switzerland and Luxembourg, the fines meted out against errant banks are widely reported.

In Malaysia, it cannot be revealed because it is against protocol. If because of protocol, banks are not deterred from breaking banking laws, then this may not be a good thing. Bank Negara should review this policy for the sake of transparency.

Kenneth_3486: BNM governor says, 'I have the evidence but no power to prosecute'. AG says, 'I have the power to prosecute but no evidence'.

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