(May 21): Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin should ask Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to resign if the latter is found responsible for 1Malaysia Development Bhd's (1MDB) RM42 billion debt, the DAP's parliamentary leader dared the deputy prime minister today.

Lim Kit Siang said Muhyiddin, who has openly criticised 1MDB and called for its board to be sacked and investigated by the police, should quit the cabinet and his post as the country's number two if no action was taken.

"Would Muhyiddin propose the sacking of Najib as Prime Minister if Najib is responsible for all the major decisions taken by the 1MDB board in the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal?

"Did Muhyiddin make clear his position on the 1MDB board in cabinet that heads must roll, and when will he make a decision to resign from the cabinet and as deputy prime minister unless the 1MDB board is sacked and the police called in to investigate the scandal?

"Furthermore, would Muhyiddin propose the  sacking of Najib as prime minister if Najib is responsible for all the major decisions taken by the 1MDB board in the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal?" Lim said in a statement today.

The Gelang Patah MP was reacting to Muhyiddin's call for the board of the government-owned strategic investment firm to be sacked and be probed by police.

Muhyiddin had said this in a video recording of him giving a speech at an Umno gathering last week and defended his remarks when asked about them on the sidelines of today's parliamentary sitting.

He said he was merely advising Najib on how to handle 1MDB's problems and did not mean he was against the Umno president and prime minister's leadership.

"The entire 1MDB board should be sacked and the police should be called in to investigate their involvement in the scandal," Muhyiddin had said in the video, to wide applause.

"I told the PM, sack the 1MDB board. If I owned the company, and the CEO racked up so much of debt, that I had to pay interest between RM100 and RM200 million every month, what else to do? Just sack," he had said.

However, Muhyiddin had also said that this was his "personal view", prompting Lim to ask if he had made such a stand in the cabinet.

He also asked if other cabinet ministers agreed with Muhyiddin and if they had taken an official position in the cabinet.

1MDB is under separate investigations by the Auditor-General and by Parliament's Public Accounts Committee.

Today, Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Mohamad Hanadzlah said he was in the midst of preparing a report on proposals to restructure 1MDB, and would present it to the cabinet before disclosing it to the public.

He said the restructuring would focus on 1MDB's property and energy assets. – The Malaysian Insider