This weekend thousands of Malaysians massed on the streets of Kuala Lumpur calling for the resignation of Najib Razak, the prime minister. They want answers to questions related to nearly $700m found in his private bank account. Mr Najib has denied any wrongdoing, saying that the cash was from a Middle Eastern benefactor, though he will not say who. He has also denied that the money has anything
to do with 1 Malaysia Development Berhad, a hugely indebted national development fund whose opaque transactions have raised suspicions among Malaysians. Mr Najib is chairman of 1MDB’s advisory board.
If Malaysia were a more robust democracy, Mr Najib would have been obliged to explain himself, or step down. Instead, he has moved decisively against the bodies that were meant to be investigating him. The auditor-