Alleged mega crook Najib Razak has been ordered by a court to pay the Inland Revenue the staggering sum of 1.69 BILLION ringgit in unpaid taxes due from 2011 to 2017. A Prime Minister, no less, cheating the Revenue of enormous sums. Because he could in Malaysia’s corrupted society.

A pertinent question to ask is with what money he will settle this criminal debt? Will one of his “Arab donors” pay it for him? An even more pertinent question. It is a criminal offence to evade tax. Why is he not being prosecuted for it? Other tax dodgers on that scale would face years in jail. Why not Najib? Of course it would have to take its turn in the string of prison sentences for his other mega crimes but so what? Malaysia can afford a jail cell and prison food for as many years as it takes him to end his days behind bars.

The IRB are to be praised for their diligence in pursuing the debt owed to the State but there clearly is more, much more, to be investigated. It is not just Najib that is guilty of massive tax evasion and other enquiries should be pushed. If the IRB do not have the staff and other facilities to do that they could contract out the work to experts on a fee basis related to the amounts of unpaid tax recovered.