Malaysia PM Najib slammed after photos show him playing golf while over 100,000 flee floods

United States President Barack Obama and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razzak playing golf at Marine Corps Base Hawaii on Dec 24, 2014. Datuk Seri Najib came under fire after photos showed him golfing with Mr Obama as the country's worst floodi
United States President Barack Obama and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razzak playing golf at Marine Corps Base Hawaii on Dec 24, 2014. Datuk Seri Najib came under fire after photos showed him golfing with Mr Obama as the country's worst flooding in decades forced more than 100,000 people to flee. -- PHOTO: AFP

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak came under fire after photos showed him golfing with United States President Barack Obama as the country's worst flooding in decades forced more than 100,000 people to flee.

At least five people have been killed by the rising waters and there appeared little respite on the way on Friday, with forecasters predicting further heavy rainfall across previously unaffected southern parts of the country.

As local media carried photographs of people wading through flood waters as deep as 2m and entire houses submerged by rising water, the government faced criticism for not declaring a state of emergency to help devastated communities.

Seasonal flooding hits Malaysia every year and regularly forces tens of thousands from their homes, but the latest round has forced the authorities to evacuate more than 100,000 in seven states, mostly in the north-east, state news agency Bernama reported.

A total of 105,568 people have been displaced in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Perak, Kedah, Perlis and Johor, surpassing the previous record of 100,000 people evacuated during floods in 2008.

Among the dead was a man who drowned at a relief centre on Christmas Eve, while a rescue boat carrying eight people including a young couple went missing after it became entrapped in a whirlpool and capsized, the news agency said.

Rising floodwaters has rendered several roads unusable and the authorities have suspended train services in some of the worst-affected areas. Communications have also been badly hit by the storms.

In a rare piece of positive news, around 100 tourists who were stranded in a remote resort in central Malaysia's Mutiara Taman Negara Resort were rescued and sent to a relief centre.

Datuk Seri Najib called on rescue workers desperately trying to reach flood victims to step up their efforts to deliver food and water.

Mr Najib himself came under fire, however, when photos emerged of the Premier playing golf with Mr Obama in Hawaii, with Malaysians questioning why he was not at home to deal with the crisis in posts on his official Facebook page.

Critics have also charged his government with failing to respond quickly enough, with some lambasting the authorities for not declaring a state of emergency in the worst-hit regions.

"The PM needs time to take a break," Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was quoted as saying by The New Straits Times.

"He has been working very hard so let's be fair to him as a human being. Don't worry, I'm in charge."

Tan Sri Muhyiddin also insisted the government had responded appropriately to the flooding, telling the newspaper: "We face floods every year but this is looking to be the worst the country has seen in the last 30 years."

"Unless there was a total breakdown in electricity or water supply, or if the number of evacuees rises to over hundreds of thousands, we will not declare a state of emergency."

The Malaysian Meteorological Department warned of a heavy downpour over the next few days in parts of the country that have so far been spared the worst of the flooding, including the southern state of Johor, which neighbours Singapore.

Residents there have been cautioned to prepare for possible massive floods.

Some states and districts across Malaysia have decided to cancel their New Year celebration plans as a mark of respect for flood victims.

FLOOD DATA BY STATE

Number of evacuees* from:

KELANTAN: 32,139

TERENGGANU: 31,001

PAHANG: 35,736

PERAK: 6,119

JOHOR: 214

KEDAH: 96

PERLIS: 263

TOTAL: 105,568

(*as of Dec 26, 2014, 1pm)

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