Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife have been banned from leaving the country, immigration officials say.

This comes after Najib said on Twitter that he is taking a short break to spend time with his family.

“After over four decades in politics and the recent election campaign, which was regrettably personal and perhaps the most intense in Malaysian history, I will take a short break to spend time with my family whom I have not seen enough of in recent years,” Najib said.

Earlier this week, Najib’s long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition suffered a shock electoral defeat.

Najib has been accused of diverting $700m from a state investment fund – a charge he denies.