Malaysian opposition leader Dr Mahathir Mohamad is leading public opinion over Prime Minister Najib Razak, a pollster claimed Monday, as the Southeast Asian country edges closer to federal polls on May 9. The US justice department has moved to seize more than $1bn of assets allegedly acquired using funds misappropriated from the Malaysian economic development fund 1MDB by individuals with close ties with Najib. The prime minister has insisted there was no wrongdoing in the 1MDB scandal and instead blamed a “problematic business model” for the billions of dollars that went missing from a government investment fund.