DR Mahathir Mohamad today said the government’s failure to repay the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) debt on time is a sign that it does not have sufficient funds, questioning where and how the money was spent.

The former prime minister said Malaysians had the right to know how the US$600 million (RM2.6 billion) owed to the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) was used and invested as the country’s debts would eventually trickle down to the people.

“Najib (Razak) thinks that Malays are stupid. Just give Malays money directly, and they won’t question where the US$600 million has gone,” he wrote on his blog, chedet.

“And, Najib believes that Malays will continue to support him.

“But, Malays are not as stupid as Najib thinks. They have begun to see that the money that has gone missing is their money.

“The debt will be paid by them, their children and their grandchildren.”

Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadal, which owns IPIC, issued a statement yesterday, giving 1MDB five days to make the payment that it had missed on Monday.

Failure to do so would see the state investor “become subject to additional obligations”.

Najib said in Parliament yesterday that the missed payment was a “technical” issue and not indicative that the government was short on funds.

Dr Mahathir said even if 1MDB had invested and lost a sum of the money borrowed, the assets it had bought could still be sold to repay at least a portion of the debt.

“Even if the selling price incurs a loss, a portion of the investment or assets can be sold to pay off half the debt.

“But, the government is not able to pay. Where has the money we owe gone?

“If we haven’t suffered losses from investing, and we haven’t bought assets that can be sold, where is the money we borrowed now?”

He said the country would be declared bankrupt if it failed to repay its debt, resulting in the continuous degradation of the economy.

“The debt that Najib has not paid will be borne by the people, including Malays.” – August 3, 2017.