THE bankruptcy notice served on him was nothing more than an effort to humiliate and smear his reputation, said Najib Razak.

Taking to Facebook, the former prime minister said the notice was also politically motivated and was part of a tactical move to control an “enemy”.

“This sort of humiliation, either politically motivated, personal or for any other reason, is not just only a tactical move but also to control the ‘enemy’.

“I will use this experience as a guide in my efforts to clear my name and to regain people’s confidence in me. What is more important, I will use all avenues to appeal this matter,” said Najib.

He slammed the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) for handing over the notice yesterday, on the first day of his appeal hearing against his conviction in the SRC International case.

Najib was found guilty of money-laundering, abuse of power and corruption linked to SRC International. He was sentenced to 12 years jail and fined RM210 million.

He said the move by the IRB yesterday was just to add salt to the wound.

“After my first appeal hearing yesterday, IRB officers came to my house to serve me the notice.

“Maybe it was meant to rub salt to the wound and humiliate me more,” he added.

The IRB personally handed the bankruptcy notice to Najib for failure to settle outstanding taxes amounting to RM1,692,872,924.83, which included penalties for late payment.

In July last year, Najib was ordered by the court to pay the amount in unpaid taxes for the years 2011 to 2017.

IRB filed its recovery action under the Income Tax Act 1967 (ITA) in 2019 against Najib, who was also finance minister, for the payment of additional income tax for the assessment years 2011 to 2017.

Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Ahmad Bache agreed with the IRB’s submission that under Section 106(3) of the ITA, the court shall not entertain any plea for such as whether the amount of tax sought was excessive, incorrectly assessed or under appeal.

The judge ruled in favour of IRB’s application for a summary judgment, which bypasses a full trial including testimony by witnesses.

The judge said Najib had failed to pay the total amount, including late payment penalties, and that the defendant must face “the same penalty as everyone is equal before the law.”

Najib said he would not back down from clearing his name and would continue fighting for the people.

“I will not bow to anyone who misused the law and I will continue speaking for the people.

“I have also asked my lawyers to request for a stay of execution,” he said. – April 6, 2021.