EXCLUSIVE | Former premier Najib Abdul Razak said his government's decision to place the Auditor-General's Report on 1MDB under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) was to prevent the then opposition from giving it a negative spin.

He believed this would be the case despite the then opposition members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) having gone through the report.

Ironically, the decision to place the report under the OSA fuelled speculation that Najib had something to hide and provided greater fodder for his political rivals.

In an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini, the former premier, who has denied abusing public funds for personal gain, said in hindsight that perhaps he should have been more open with regard to the report...