Najib Trial A Complication For Rantau Kj Admits

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RANTAU POLLS | Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin (photo above, fourth from left) has acknowledged that the SRC International case against former premier Najib Abdul Razak complicated matters for BN in Rantau
Khairy said BN must explain to the public that the trial is part of a legal process, and no one is guilty until sentenced by the court
"The timing of the trial complicates things for us in Rantau, we will not take this lightly
"This issue (the trial) must be addressed and explained to the rakyat," Khairy told reporters in Rantau today
The former Umno Youth chief said this when asked if Najib's presence in Rantau would affect BN's campaign for Mohamad Hasan
Najib arrived in Rantau last night, and has one more campaign event tonight
However, the former prime minister did not address his trial when speaking to voters yesterday
On Wednesday, Najib was put on trial over three charges of money laundering, three charges of criminal breach of trust, and one charge of abuse of power, in relation to RM42 million from SRC International, a former 1MDB subsidiary
The seven charges are part of a total of 42 charges that have been levied against him
On a separate matter, Khairy said BN must work harder to get non-Malay support in Rantau
"We don't want Mohamad's victory to come just from one race, we want it to come from all
"We don't want to be seen as only getting the support of the Malays," he said
Khairy added that Mohamad has done much for the non-Malay community in Rantau, highlighting his aid to Chinese and Tamil vernacular schools
As such, he said, there was no reason for non-Malays not to support Mohamad
Rantau voters comprise 47 percent non-Malays
The by-election is a four-corned fight involving Mohamad, PKR's Dr S Streram, and independent candidates R Malar and Mohd Nor Yasin
The seat fell vacant after the Federal Court upheld a decision to void Mohamad's walkover win last year
This stemmed from the returning officer's move to block Streram from filing his nomination papers in the 2018 general election
Polling day is on April 13. - Mkini

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