KUALA LUMPUR: Former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor has just been blacklisted from leaving the country, effective immediately.
“The Immigration Department would like to confirm that Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor are blacklisted from leaving the country,” read a posting on the Immigration Department of Malaysia's Facebook page.
The department's director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali confirmed this, saying the directive was issued this morning.
"Right now there are no details (on why they have been blacklisted)," he told NSTP when contacted.
In an immediate reaction on this latest development, Najib said he has been informed that he and his family members have been barred from leaving the country.
"I have been informed that the Immigration Department of Malaysia is not allowing my family and I to leave the country. I respect the order and will remain in the country with my family," he wrote on his Twitter account.
Earlier today, Mustafar refuted reports by a news portal which claimed that Najib and Rosmah were blacklisted.
The report was made based on the Immigration Control Checking System (SSPI).
Yesterday, it was reported that a private plane based in Indonesia is scheduled to land at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport this morning.
The private aircraft was scheduled to arrive at 6am and was expected to fly to the Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, Jakarta at 10am, with Najib and Rosmah on board.
However, in a press conference at the airport today, Petaling Jaya district police chief Assistant Commissioner Mohd Zani Che Din told reporters that there was no flight scheduled to depart the airport with Najib and Rosmah in the passengers list.
Earlier this morning, Najib, via a press statement said he will be taking a short holiday to spend time with his family and will be back in the country next week.
However, following the blacklist update, Najib said he will be taking a break to spend ime with his family in the country.
The Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman, who did not reveal the details of his holiday trip, said, after serving for more than four decades in the political arena, he needed to take a break and described the 14th general election (GE14) as something personal and intense.