From the start, Najib was obsessed with popularity. Like any old-school Malaysian politician, he saw money—not ideas—as the only way to achieve popularity with voters, and he squeezed 1MDB for funds. A few months after the 1MDB board meeting, Najib told voters ahead of an upcoming local election in Sarawak that he would arrange federal funding for local projects only if the ruling-party candidate won. “You help me, I help you,” a sweating Najib promised in a stump speech ahead of the voting. It was a picture of the rot in Malaysian politics.
He's far from innocent in this
