Former Malaysian PM Muhyiddin Yassin gets bail in corruption case

Kuala Lumpur: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was granted bail on Friday on charges of corruption and money laundering. Muhyiddin was arrested on Thursday on corruption charges by the Anti-Corruption Agency. Muhyiddin pleaded not guilty to four charges of abusing his authority to receive bribes of 232.5 million ringgit ($51.4 million) for his party and two charges of money laundering involving 195 million ringgit ($43 million) . He has got bail in the case.

Muhyiddin Ahem, who headed Malaysia from March 2020 to August 2021, is the country’s second former prime minister to face trial after stepping down from the key post. Earlier, former Prime Minister Najib Razak was accused of several corruption charges after his defeat in the 2018 general election. He was sent to jail in August last year after his final appeal was rejected. He has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.

The anti-corruption agency said Muhyiddin has been charged with alleged misconduct and money laundering in government projects during his tenure. Muhyiddin (75) was questioned at the anti-corruption agency’s office on Thursday. Earlier, he was questioned in February regarding the approval of the projects. These projects also include the Kovid-19 Economic Assistance Program.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who took power after November’s general election, ordered a review of government projects approved during his tenure, accusing the previous government of not following rules. Prime Minister Ibrahim has dismissed allegations that the crackdown against Muhyiddin was politically motivated. He said an independent investigation was being conducted by the anti-corruption agency.