Graft trial of Rosmah Mansor, wife of ex-Malaysian PM Najib Razak, delayed after illness claim
- The 69-year-old submitted a doctor’s letter claiming she was too ill to present herself, and the trial has been adjourned till Wednesday
- The case has to do with the installation of solar energy sources at over 350 rural schools in Sarawak and she faces up to 20 years jail if found guilty
Lead prosecutor for the government Gopal Sri Ram described the letter as an act of bad faith to avoid attending court, stating that Rosmah only suffered from “an overdose of publicity and wealth”.
The judge allowed for the matter to be adjourned until Wednesday, saying Rosmah could come to court in a wheelchair if necessary.
The corruption charges against Rosmah are in connection with the installation of solar energy sources at over 350 rural schools in the Bornean state of Sarawak. Accused of three counts of dishonestly soliciting 194 million ringgit (US$47.1 million) in bribes, she faces up to 20 years in jail and a fine if found guilty.
The current trial is just the tip of the iceberg as Rosmah is also facing a separate 12 charges for money laundering and five counts of failure to declare income to the country’s tax authorities, bringing the total number of charges against her to 20.
Rosmah, 69, will be in the same court complex in Kuala Lumpur as her husband Najib – who was ousted in 2018 and promptly charged with over 40 counts of corruption and abuse of power – whose own trial is ongoing.
She was initially meant to face down the charges with a former aide to Najib, Rizal Mansor.
However, Rizal’s charges were withdrawn last month, with the lead prosecutor saying that the team “will take the decision to call him [as a witness] as the case comes along”, depending on how the case progresses.
Rosmah’s own reputation among the Malaysian public has also been widely tarnished due to her rumoured profligate spending and supposed control over her husband.
Two years ago after elections, police raids on the homes she shared with Najib saw 284 boxes of designer handbags and piles of luxury jewellery seized.
Rosmah’s scolding of Najib is talk of the town
Other items seized by police following Najib’s shock loss in the general election included 2,200 rings, 1,400 necklaces, 14 tiaras, 423 watches, and 234 pairs of designer sunglasses.
More recently, Rosmah became the talk of the town after Malaysian anti-corruption authorities released recordings of phone calls between her and Najib where she was seen to be “scolding” him.
“You still do not listen to me,” the female voice said, going on to say that an anti-corruption official who was sacked soon after was “looking like a hero and you, the villain”.
“I don’t like this. Darling, you are the prime minister, you should take charge, not anybody else, OK?” she says. A man, the authorities say is Najib, meekly responds: “Yep, I understand.”
Najib uses phrase from leaked tapes to mock officials over Azmin sex video
The release of the tapes saw Malaysians widely mocking the pair on social media and posting tweets poking fun at the dynamic between the couple as it was long believed Rosmah held undue sway over her husband.
Najib later denied that his wife had “scolded” him, saying it was a normal private conversation between a married couple.
The corruption charges in Malaysia seem to be a family affair as Rosmah’s film producer son, Riza Aziz, is also facing five charges of money-laundering involving millions of dollars.
Riza, whose Red Granite Films produced The Wolf of Wall Street has filed a representation for a review of the charges, and will know the outcome by the end of the month.
