Malaysians have been demanding answers from Dato' Seri Najib Razak on the 1MDB-related scandal, that is the RM4 billion SRC International, which is the former subsidiary of 1MDB. Similar to 1MDB, the money which was borrowed from KWAP has been invested in mysterious and unknown funds overseas. No one, including anyone from the Ministry of Finance (MOF) knows where the money has disappeared to.
The Prime Minister and the Attorney-General have also stubbornly refused to respond to the clear-cut evidence which have shown that SRC International has transferred, via intermediaries, at least RM67 million into the personal bank account of Dato' Seri Najib Razak.
However, it appears that Dato' Seri Najib cannot remain silent forever as, like 1MDB, the international authorities are catching up to the SRC International laundering scams.
The Swiss Attorney-General Office (OAG) has publicly stated that investigations revealed that substantial amounts of money were allegedly misappropriated from former 1MDB subsidiary SRC International and that fraud was committed based on a form of “Ponzi” scheme to cover it up.
Dato' Seri Najib Razak can no longer choose to remain silent in the face of another international investigation over funds which he controls. He must come forward and disclose if the allegations made by the Swiss authorities are frivolous or are they substantive, which will require an open and thorough investigation in Malaysia.
In addition, Dato' Seri Najib Razak must state if he will provide full cooperation with the Swiss authorities who are demanding and requiring information from their counterparts in Malaysia. Or is he going to merely pay lip service and ignore the requests?
At least in 1MDB, for the longest time, there were "faces" who responded to questions and queries, like Datuk Shahrol Halmi and Arul Kanda.
The question Malaysians have is, who is or are running the show in SRC International? As far as we are aware, the Managing Director of SRC International, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil has disappeared off the face of Malaysia together with another fellow Director, Datuk Suboh Yassin. And yet despite their disappearance, they have remained Directors in SRC International over the past year or more. In fact, when asked, the Prime Minister had responded in Parliament that there is no need at all to appoint new Directors or a new management team.
It is a testament to the failure of Malaysian institutions, entrusted to safeguard the people's money as well as law and order, that nothing concrete has been done to uncover another massive embezzlement of RM4 billion of funds from a state-owned subsidiary. What have the police, Bank Negara Malaysia, MACC or the Attorney-General's office been doing? Have they been closing both eyes because the scandal involved the Prime Minister himself?
If Dato' Seri Najib Razak believes that the Swiss allegations are frivolous and untrue, then he should immediately demand the Auditor-General commence a new report specifically on SRC International and table the report to Parliament. If not, there is no longer any credibility to his administration which will be etched in history as the single biggest den of thieves.
Showing posts with label Crime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Crime. Show all posts
Thursday, October 06, 2016
Friday, September 09, 2016
The Royal Malaysian Police and Bank Negara must investigate latest allegations that Ambank officials actively conspired with Jho Low to launder funds into Dato’ Seri Najib Razak's personal bank accounts
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) had on 6 September 2016 made very specific allegations against Ambank Malaysia and its officials of facilitating and abetting money-laundering when billions of ringgit was transferred into the bank accounts of Dato’ Seri Najib Razak.
In making the allegations, the prestigious financial paper substantiated the claims with private conversations between senior Ambank officials with Low Taek Jho, who was carrying out the transactions on behalf of the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister gave Low access to his accounts, according to investigative documents sighted by WSJ. His primary contact at AmBank was Joanna Yu, the banker he had warned via BlackBerry to communicate discreetly. Cheah Tek Kuang, a senior AmBank executive and adviser to the bank’s chairman, handled the account personally, the BlackBerry messages indicate.
On the assumption that the messages were genuine, they clearly indicated a conspiracy by the above parties to at best hide the transactions from scrutiny, and at worst, blatant masking of the illicit transactions as legitimate ones.
According to WSJ, Low sent hampers of food to Yu and lunched with her at noodle shops, according to the phone messages. He kept reinforcing the need for secrecy: “v v important no one should know in ambank besides u or cheah or get hold of statement,” one message said. “Cause if it gets on internet where funds were from then headache.”
Yu even made recommendations on which US correspondent bank will raise less questions involving the transfers. They discussed whether to use Wells Fargo & Co. or J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.
“Can do JP, but may raise ques too…suspect better keep to wachovia,” Ms. Yu wrote, referring to a unit of Wells Fargo.
“Okay, wachovia then,” he replied. The transfer went through the Wells Fargo unit.
The above conversations raises major concerns of a high-level conspiracy to enable the money-laundering transactions to take place without being questioned or detected.
As the parties responsible for Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Act (AMLA), the Royal Malaysian Police and particularly, Bank Negara must take immediate actions to investigate the above very serious allegations.
They must be investigated, and if found true, concrete actions must be taken to protect the integrity of our banking institutions and financial system. Otherwise, the hard-earned reputation of Bank Negara and Malaysia will take a severe beating.
Instead, Malaysia may become an infamous haven for the rich and powerful criminals to abuse our banking institutions to hide and launder their ill-gotten wealth.
In making the allegations, the prestigious financial paper substantiated the claims with private conversations between senior Ambank officials with Low Taek Jho, who was carrying out the transactions on behalf of the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister gave Low access to his accounts, according to investigative documents sighted by WSJ. His primary contact at AmBank was Joanna Yu, the banker he had warned via BlackBerry to communicate discreetly. Cheah Tek Kuang, a senior AmBank executive and adviser to the bank’s chairman, handled the account personally, the BlackBerry messages indicate.
On the assumption that the messages were genuine, they clearly indicated a conspiracy by the above parties to at best hide the transactions from scrutiny, and at worst, blatant masking of the illicit transactions as legitimate ones.
According to WSJ, Low sent hampers of food to Yu and lunched with her at noodle shops, according to the phone messages. He kept reinforcing the need for secrecy: “v v important no one should know in ambank besides u or cheah or get hold of statement,” one message said. “Cause if it gets on internet where funds were from then headache.”
Yu even made recommendations on which US correspondent bank will raise less questions involving the transfers. They discussed whether to use Wells Fargo & Co. or J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.
“Can do JP, but may raise ques too…suspect better keep to wachovia,” Ms. Yu wrote, referring to a unit of Wells Fargo.
“Okay, wachovia then,” he replied. The transfer went through the Wells Fargo unit.
The above conversations raises major concerns of a high-level conspiracy to enable the money-laundering transactions to take place without being questioned or detected.
As the parties responsible for Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Act (AMLA), the Royal Malaysian Police and particularly, Bank Negara must take immediate actions to investigate the above very serious allegations.
They must be investigated, and if found true, concrete actions must be taken to protect the integrity of our banking institutions and financial system. Otherwise, the hard-earned reputation of Bank Negara and Malaysia will take a severe beating.
Instead, Malaysia may become an infamous haven for the rich and powerful criminals to abuse our banking institutions to hide and launder their ill-gotten wealth.
Monday, August 22, 2016
The Police’s ring-fenced investigations into 1MDB points to scapegoating former Director and CEO Datuk Shahrol Halmi for the multi-billion dollar scandal
The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar disclosed on Friday that the police have completed the first phase of their investigation into 1MDB, which is restricted to the five recommendations by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) as ordered by the cabinet.
As pointed by DAP Parliamentary Leader, the “five recommendations” by the PAC has nothing to do with police investigations as they relate to corporate reorganisation of the heavily indebted company. For example, the PAC recommended that the 1MDB Board of Advisors be dissolved, that the Ministry of Finance assumes ownership of the property assets under the company and that 1MDB “should avoid excessive debt”.
The only request by the PAC in its report, which was not part of the five recommendations, was for 1MDB’s former Director and Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Shahrol Halmi and others who were involved to be investigated by the authorities.
This leads Malaysians to believe that the ring-fence imposed by the Cabinet and willingly accepted by the IGP, is nothing more than a strategy to place the entire blame for the multi-billion dollar scam on the shoulders of Datuk Shahrol Halmi.
It clearly appears that Datuk Shahrol will be made a scapegoat to ease the pressure on the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak who has failed to take any concrete action at all against any party for the losses suffered in what the UK Guardian named as the “world’s largest financial scandal”.
The powers that be would certainly hope that with Datuk Shahrol’s incarceration, a mere pawn in the wider scheme of things, they would be able to wash their hands off the scandal and close the lid on the ugliest chapter of Malaysia’s history.
However, by doing so, the Police would once again make complete fools of themselves, no different from the Altantuya murder scandal in 2006. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar who were members of the elite Unit Tindakan Khas assigned to the office of the then Deputy Prime Minister Dato’ Najib Razak, were found guilty of murdering the Mongolian woman. However, no motive was ever presented by the police and the prosecution, or found by the Malaysian Courts when they were condemned to death sentences.
In 1MDB’s case, if only Datuk Shahrol were to be charged and found guilty, the similar question could be asked – what motive is there for Datuk Shahrol to carry out the multi-billion dollar global embezzlement exercise?
Datuk Shahrol, who was referred to as “1MDB Officer 2” in the US Department of Justice suit to seize US$1 billion of laundered 1MDB assets, was never disclosed as an individual beneficiary of the stolen funds.
The beneficiaries of the loot were Low Taek Jho, Riza Aziz, Khadem Al-Qubaisi and Mohammad Badawy Al-Husseiny. In addition, a “Malaysian Official 1” who could only refer to Dato’ Seri Najib Razak, received a whopping US$731 million from the embezzled proceeds.
I have no doubt that Datuk Shahrol is guilty of participating and facilitating in the massive scam to defraud ordinary Malaysians and should be charged for abetting the heinous crime. However, he is but a cog in the wheel of the 1MDB scandal. It will be the greatest travesty of justice, similar to the Altantuya murder, where the real conspirators and crooks who had benefited immensely from the crimes are let of scot free.
As pointed by DAP Parliamentary Leader, the “five recommendations” by the PAC has nothing to do with police investigations as they relate to corporate reorganisation of the heavily indebted company. For example, the PAC recommended that the 1MDB Board of Advisors be dissolved, that the Ministry of Finance assumes ownership of the property assets under the company and that 1MDB “should avoid excessive debt”.
The only request by the PAC in its report, which was not part of the five recommendations, was for 1MDB’s former Director and Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Shahrol Halmi and others who were involved to be investigated by the authorities.
This leads Malaysians to believe that the ring-fence imposed by the Cabinet and willingly accepted by the IGP, is nothing more than a strategy to place the entire blame for the multi-billion dollar scam on the shoulders of Datuk Shahrol Halmi.
It clearly appears that Datuk Shahrol will be made a scapegoat to ease the pressure on the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak who has failed to take any concrete action at all against any party for the losses suffered in what the UK Guardian named as the “world’s largest financial scandal”.
The powers that be would certainly hope that with Datuk Shahrol’s incarceration, a mere pawn in the wider scheme of things, they would be able to wash their hands off the scandal and close the lid on the ugliest chapter of Malaysia’s history.
However, by doing so, the Police would once again make complete fools of themselves, no different from the Altantuya murder scandal in 2006. Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar who were members of the elite Unit Tindakan Khas assigned to the office of the then Deputy Prime Minister Dato’ Najib Razak, were found guilty of murdering the Mongolian woman. However, no motive was ever presented by the police and the prosecution, or found by the Malaysian Courts when they were condemned to death sentences.
In 1MDB’s case, if only Datuk Shahrol were to be charged and found guilty, the similar question could be asked – what motive is there for Datuk Shahrol to carry out the multi-billion dollar global embezzlement exercise?
Datuk Shahrol, who was referred to as “1MDB Officer 2” in the US Department of Justice suit to seize US$1 billion of laundered 1MDB assets, was never disclosed as an individual beneficiary of the stolen funds.
The beneficiaries of the loot were Low Taek Jho, Riza Aziz, Khadem Al-Qubaisi and Mohammad Badawy Al-Husseiny. In addition, a “Malaysian Official 1” who could only refer to Dato’ Seri Najib Razak, received a whopping US$731 million from the embezzled proceeds.
I have no doubt that Datuk Shahrol is guilty of participating and facilitating in the massive scam to defraud ordinary Malaysians and should be charged for abetting the heinous crime. However, he is but a cog in the wheel of the 1MDB scandal. It will be the greatest travesty of justice, similar to the Altantuya murder, where the real conspirators and crooks who had benefited immensely from the crimes are let of scot free.
Monday, July 11, 2016
If the leaked Auditor-General’s Report on 1MDB by Sarawak Report is genuine, the Police must catch the crooks instead of going after whistleblowers!
On Saturday, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the police will probe whistleblower site Sarawak Report under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) for leaking the classified auditor-general’s report on 1MDB, but only after they verify that it was the genuine document.
“We’re also not sure if the document they published is genuine. So let me discuss with the auditor-general first to make sure whether the document is truly the auditor-general’s report, which has been classified as secret. If it's true, then we will investigate under OSA. So let’s all calm down first.”
The IGP’s statement is shocking on several counts. For one, Malaysians are shocked that after months since the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) tabled its report on 1MDB to Parliament demanding investigations on Datuk Shahrol Halmi and others involved in defrauding 1MDB, the Police have yet to gain access to the detailed Auditor-General’s Report on 1MDB.
Has the Police been so lackadaisical in its investigations on 1MDB that it hasn’t already obtained a copy of the AG’s Report on 1MDB? The IGP looked like a fool disclosing to Malaysians that he still has to “discuss with the AG first” to determine if what was leaked on Sarawak Report was indeed the AG’s Report.
Or has the Najib administration decided to maintain the AG’s Report as an OSA document so that even the Police will have difficulty accessing it? Is this the real reason why the Cabinet has refused to declassify the report as it should have, so that the crooks behind 1MDB cannot be easily and properly investigated?
Regardless, if the leaked AG’s Report by Sarawak Report which exposed the billions defrauded and covered up by 1MDB officers is indeed genuine, Malaysians are shocked that the IGP isn’t at all interested in getting to the bottom of the scam and putting the crooks behind bars.
As the Chief of Malaysian police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar should be thoroughly scandalised and embarrassed by the single largest multi-billion dollar heist which has taken place under his nose over the past 5 years. However, from his media response, he appeared completely indifferent to the great robbery but instead is more interested in a witch hunt to capture and charge the heroic whistleblower under the Official Secrets Act.
The IGP would do well to remember that police officers are sworn to protect Malaysians against criminals and not instead to cover up for crooks. The Official Secrets Act, draconian that it may be, was designed to protect the national interest of the country, particularly against the leaking of security secrets to foreign agents.
The AG’s Report on 1MDB is not a national security document. It is a document which audited 1MDB for tens of billions of ringgit lost and has been exposed as such by the Sarawak Report. It is hence a crucial evidentiary report against the masterminds behind the 1MDB scam and any attempt by the IGP to suppress the evidence will pervert the course of justice in Malaysia.
Sunday, May 29, 2016
Who is Datuk Hasan Arifin trying to protect when he works so hard to hide the fact that Good Star Limited belongs to Jho Low?
The Malaysian public can now see for themselves the types of challenges the opposition members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) faced when dealing with a Chairman the likes of Datuk Hasan Arifin.
Despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Datuk Hasan Arifin made the outright denial that Good Star Limited belonged to Low Taek Jho, or better known as Jho Low. Good Star Limited has received US$1.03 billion of direct payments from 1MDB from 2009 to 2011.
“Selaku Pengerusi PAC saya ingin menafikan bahawa pemilik Good Star Limited adalah Low Taek Jho seperti yang dinyatakan oleh akhbar Wall Street Journal dengan mengaitkan surat Bank Negara terhadap Jawatankuasa ini,” he said.
This outrageous denial was made despite the Bank Negara disclosed that 2 foreign regulatory authorities confirmed to Bank Negara that the sole beneficiary of Good Star Limited was Jho Low and the ownership status never changed since its inception in June 2009.
Instead, he chose to dismiss Bank Negara’s letter claiming that the information provided is of “intelligence grade” (bertaraf risikan). Hence, since the PAC is not an “intelligence agency”, we are unable to verify the authenticity and truth of the information.
This must be the most gravity-defying acrobatic twist of logic from the Chairman who was only appointed to lead the committee in October last year. An “intelligence grade” piece of information does not require an intelligence agency to make use of the intelligence reports.
On the contrary, the “intelligence grade” information should be taken as the likely truth unless otherwise proven because it was intelligence received from Bank Negara’s counterparts in foreign countries.
Furthermore, if “intelligence grade” information from Bank Negara cannot be believed, then why should the PAC Chairman accept at face value the letter from Petrosaudi acknowledging Good Star Limited as its subsidiary by mere assertion, unsupported by any documentary evidence? We don’t even know if the letter provided by 1MDB is genuine! Is he claiming that Bank Negara far less trustworthy than 1MDB, the very company the PAC is tasked to investigate?
Datuk Hasan Arifin then argued that because the letter was of “intelligence grade”, information contained in the letter cannot be included in any reports produced by the PAC.
However, he neglected to mention that Bank Negara specifically provided that the PAC can be allowed to use the information contained in its letter for PAC’s publications on the condition that “approval from the foreign regulatory authorities be obtained via Bank Negara in advance”. (Sekiranya PAC bercadang untuk menggunakan maklumat di dalam dokumen awam, kebenaran dari negara-negara terlibat melalui Bank perlu dipohon terlebih dahulu.)
What’s more, the letter would provide the necessary leads for the PAC to investigate further into the multi-billion dollar embezzlement which took place. For example, the PAC would then have the strong basis to summon Jho Low to testify to the Committee.
In addition, Datuk Hasan Arifin did not respond to the question as to why he refused to share the “intelligence grade” letter to the PAC members? He claimed that the letter was addressed to him confidentially, but the contents of the Bank Negara letter repeatedly made reference to the information which was “provided to the PAC”. (pendedahan maklumat pendaftaran GSL adalah terhad kepada PAC…)
Therefore Datuk Hasan Arifin’s media response yesterday did not absolve him from his role in covering up the 1MDB scandal. Instead it only confirmed that he is either a complete illiterate who could not read and understand basic Bahasa Malaysia, or more likely, he is abusing his position as the PAC Chairman to obstruct the investigations into the single largest financial scandal in the history of the country.
As such, Datuk Hasan Arifin’s response reinforced our calls for him to resign as the PAC Chairman because Malaysians can no longer trust him to carry out his role honestly, professionally and with integrity.
The top most question now which he must answer is, why is he going all out to hide Jho Low’s connections to Good Star and 1MDB, even at the cost of making him look like a complete idiot? Is it because Jho Low will be the key to unlock the mystery of how billions of ringgit might have found its way to Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his family’s personal wealth?
Despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Datuk Hasan Arifin made the outright denial that Good Star Limited belonged to Low Taek Jho, or better known as Jho Low. Good Star Limited has received US$1.03 billion of direct payments from 1MDB from 2009 to 2011.
“Selaku Pengerusi PAC saya ingin menafikan bahawa pemilik Good Star Limited adalah Low Taek Jho seperti yang dinyatakan oleh akhbar Wall Street Journal dengan mengaitkan surat Bank Negara terhadap Jawatankuasa ini,” he said.
This outrageous denial was made despite the Bank Negara disclosed that 2 foreign regulatory authorities confirmed to Bank Negara that the sole beneficiary of Good Star Limited was Jho Low and the ownership status never changed since its inception in June 2009.
Instead, he chose to dismiss Bank Negara’s letter claiming that the information provided is of “intelligence grade” (bertaraf risikan). Hence, since the PAC is not an “intelligence agency”, we are unable to verify the authenticity and truth of the information.
This must be the most gravity-defying acrobatic twist of logic from the Chairman who was only appointed to lead the committee in October last year. An “intelligence grade” piece of information does not require an intelligence agency to make use of the intelligence reports.
On the contrary, the “intelligence grade” information should be taken as the likely truth unless otherwise proven because it was intelligence received from Bank Negara’s counterparts in foreign countries.
Furthermore, if “intelligence grade” information from Bank Negara cannot be believed, then why should the PAC Chairman accept at face value the letter from Petrosaudi acknowledging Good Star Limited as its subsidiary by mere assertion, unsupported by any documentary evidence? We don’t even know if the letter provided by 1MDB is genuine! Is he claiming that Bank Negara far less trustworthy than 1MDB, the very company the PAC is tasked to investigate?
Datuk Hasan Arifin then argued that because the letter was of “intelligence grade”, information contained in the letter cannot be included in any reports produced by the PAC.
However, he neglected to mention that Bank Negara specifically provided that the PAC can be allowed to use the information contained in its letter for PAC’s publications on the condition that “approval from the foreign regulatory authorities be obtained via Bank Negara in advance”. (Sekiranya PAC bercadang untuk menggunakan maklumat di dalam dokumen awam, kebenaran dari negara-negara terlibat melalui Bank perlu dipohon terlebih dahulu.)
What’s more, the letter would provide the necessary leads for the PAC to investigate further into the multi-billion dollar embezzlement which took place. For example, the PAC would then have the strong basis to summon Jho Low to testify to the Committee.
In addition, Datuk Hasan Arifin did not respond to the question as to why he refused to share the “intelligence grade” letter to the PAC members? He claimed that the letter was addressed to him confidentially, but the contents of the Bank Negara letter repeatedly made reference to the information which was “provided to the PAC”. (pendedahan maklumat pendaftaran GSL adalah terhad kepada PAC…)
Therefore Datuk Hasan Arifin’s media response yesterday did not absolve him from his role in covering up the 1MDB scandal. Instead it only confirmed that he is either a complete illiterate who could not read and understand basic Bahasa Malaysia, or more likely, he is abusing his position as the PAC Chairman to obstruct the investigations into the single largest financial scandal in the history of the country.
As such, Datuk Hasan Arifin’s response reinforced our calls for him to resign as the PAC Chairman because Malaysians can no longer trust him to carry out his role honestly, professionally and with integrity.
The top most question now which he must answer is, why is he going all out to hide Jho Low’s connections to Good Star and 1MDB, even at the cost of making him look like a complete idiot? Is it because Jho Low will be the key to unlock the mystery of how billions of ringgit might have found its way to Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his family’s personal wealth?
Saturday, May 28, 2016
The "cari makan" chairman of PAC must resign for lying to the committee, suppressing evidence and obstructing investigations into 1MDB!
The Public Accounts Committee members were baffled as to why Datuk Hasan Arifin had unilaterally deleted sentences from the finalised PAC Report on 1MDB which quoted Bank Negara who disclosed that the “ultimate beneficiary of Good Star Limited is an individual not related to Petrosaudi International Limited”.
We were further stumped by Datuk Hasan Arifin’s failure to disclose to PAC members another letter from Bank Negara dated 6 April 2016, a day before the final PAC report was tabled in Parliament. When we discovered the existence of the letter via a ministerial reply in Parliament on 17 May 2016, we had confronted the PAC Chairman at our meeting the very next day.
All PAC opposition members were left speechless when Datuk Hasan refused to share the contents of the Bank Negara letter with us. We could not understand Datuk Hasan’s claims of confidentiality when PAC members were even authorised to review the Auditor-General’s Report on 1MDB which was classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA). What could possibly be more confidential than OSA documents?
Datuk Hasan’s highly suspicious behaviour led us to believe that the Bank Negara letter responding to queries from the PAC must have contained some damning information on 1MDB. I had speculated two days ago that Bank Negara must have outed Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low as the sole beneficiary of Good Star Limited and demanded that the PAC Chairman confirm or deny my allegation.
Datuk Hasan Arifin refused to respond to the press despite repeated queries.
Malaysians are ashamed because we have to depend on the foreign media, The Wall Street Journal in this case, to expose the truth contained in the said letter. The letter dated 6 April 2016 from Bank Negara to the PAC clearly stated that Good Star Limited is “beneficially owned by Low Taek Jho” and that there was never any change of ownership in the company.
This crucial piece of information opens up a whole Pandora’s Box and confirmed what critics like The Sarawak Report, The Edge publications and opposition Members of Parliament have accused 1MDB all along, that out of the US$1.83 billion investment 1MDB carried out with Petrosaudi International Limited, at least US$1.03 billion have been directly misappropriated to Good Star Limited, owned by Jho Low.
This incontrovertible evidence tears to shreds the pretense by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and 1MDB’s top officials that Good Star Limited belongs to the Petrosaudi group, a claim which was not backed by any legally-admissible documentary evidence.
This vital evidence, if taken into consideration by the Auditor-General and the PAC, would have made the already damning PAC report even more devastating. Fraud, while previously suspected, would have been confirmed.
In fact, had Datuk Hasan Arifin shared the Bank Negara letter with the PAC members, a whole new front of investigations would have been opened, including summoning Jho Low to testify before the PAC. Instead, he lied to the PAC members claiming that the Bank Negara letter was intended for his eyes only. This was despite the letter clearly making reference to the information being provided to the PAC for deliberations.
Hence it cannot be clearer that Datuk Hasan Arifin has been nominated by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and Barisan Nasional to hamper and cover up the investigations into 1MDB. The PAC Chairman has denigrated his parliamentary position to become a tool to help the crooks who stole billions of dollars of Malaysian tax-payers’ money.
He has lied to and acted against the decisions of the PAC. He has suppressed crucial evidence to cover up shenanigans multi-billion ringgit fraud by the powers that be. He obstructed the parliamentary investigation into the single largest scandal in the history of Malaysia.
Datuk Hasan Arifin’s position as the PAC Chairman is no longer tenable because Malaysians can no longer trust him to carry out his role honestly, professionally and with integrity. We now call upon Datuk Hasan Arifin to resign as the Chairman of the PAC because he has brought disrepute to the committee and disgraced the Parliament.
We were further stumped by Datuk Hasan Arifin’s failure to disclose to PAC members another letter from Bank Negara dated 6 April 2016, a day before the final PAC report was tabled in Parliament. When we discovered the existence of the letter via a ministerial reply in Parliament on 17 May 2016, we had confronted the PAC Chairman at our meeting the very next day.
All PAC opposition members were left speechless when Datuk Hasan refused to share the contents of the Bank Negara letter with us. We could not understand Datuk Hasan’s claims of confidentiality when PAC members were even authorised to review the Auditor-General’s Report on 1MDB which was classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA). What could possibly be more confidential than OSA documents?
Datuk Hasan’s highly suspicious behaviour led us to believe that the Bank Negara letter responding to queries from the PAC must have contained some damning information on 1MDB. I had speculated two days ago that Bank Negara must have outed Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low as the sole beneficiary of Good Star Limited and demanded that the PAC Chairman confirm or deny my allegation.
Datuk Hasan Arifin refused to respond to the press despite repeated queries.
Malaysians are ashamed because we have to depend on the foreign media, The Wall Street Journal in this case, to expose the truth contained in the said letter. The letter dated 6 April 2016 from Bank Negara to the PAC clearly stated that Good Star Limited is “beneficially owned by Low Taek Jho” and that there was never any change of ownership in the company.
This crucial piece of information opens up a whole Pandora’s Box and confirmed what critics like The Sarawak Report, The Edge publications and opposition Members of Parliament have accused 1MDB all along, that out of the US$1.83 billion investment 1MDB carried out with Petrosaudi International Limited, at least US$1.03 billion have been directly misappropriated to Good Star Limited, owned by Jho Low.
This incontrovertible evidence tears to shreds the pretense by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and 1MDB’s top officials that Good Star Limited belongs to the Petrosaudi group, a claim which was not backed by any legally-admissible documentary evidence.
This vital evidence, if taken into consideration by the Auditor-General and the PAC, would have made the already damning PAC report even more devastating. Fraud, while previously suspected, would have been confirmed.
In fact, had Datuk Hasan Arifin shared the Bank Negara letter with the PAC members, a whole new front of investigations would have been opened, including summoning Jho Low to testify before the PAC. Instead, he lied to the PAC members claiming that the Bank Negara letter was intended for his eyes only. This was despite the letter clearly making reference to the information being provided to the PAC for deliberations.
Hence it cannot be clearer that Datuk Hasan Arifin has been nominated by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and Barisan Nasional to hamper and cover up the investigations into 1MDB. The PAC Chairman has denigrated his parliamentary position to become a tool to help the crooks who stole billions of dollars of Malaysian tax-payers’ money.
He has lied to and acted against the decisions of the PAC. He has suppressed crucial evidence to cover up shenanigans multi-billion ringgit fraud by the powers that be. He obstructed the parliamentary investigation into the single largest scandal in the history of Malaysia.
Datuk Hasan Arifin’s position as the PAC Chairman is no longer tenable because Malaysians can no longer trust him to carry out his role honestly, professionally and with integrity. We now call upon Datuk Hasan Arifin to resign as the Chairman of the PAC because he has brought disrepute to the committee and disgraced the Parliament.
Thursday, May 26, 2016
Will BNM follow the footsteps of Swiss and Singaporean authorities in investigating the suspected money-laundering related to 1MDB and Dato' Seri Najib Razak?
Switzerland's Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has commenced criminal proceedings against BSI SA Bank for facilitating the offences of money laundering and bribery of foreign public officials in relation to 1MDB.
Simultaneously, the Monetary Authority of Singapore shut down BSI Bank operations in the island-state. The grounds provided include "serious breaches of anti-money laundering requirements, poor management oversight of the bank's operations and gross misconduct by some of the bank's staff".
In contrast, what has Bank Negara done to protect the integrity of our financial system? Despite the fact that Malaysia is being ridiculed globally and cited as an example of a rogue state run by kleptocrats, Bank Negara has barely bared its purportedly powerful fangs to indict those who have been responsible.
Despite being arguably the most “aggressive” regulatory agency to investigate 1MDB in Malaysia, Bank Negara barely scratched the surface of the entire scandal.
The central bank had made hue and cry over how 1MDB illegally transferred US$1.83 billion overseas, and the demands that 1MDB return the funds immediately. But it all ended with a whimper when Bank Negara agreed to close the chapter by slapping 1MDB on the wrist with a compound. 1MDB proudly issued a statement that it has paid the fine yesterday.
To rub salt on Malaysians’ wounds, the quantum of the fine was undisclosed, so it could be a pitiful RM4,000 for all we know.
Hence instead of becoming the agency which acts without fear or favour that Malaysians are proud of, Bank Negara has blemished it’s much-vaulted reputation and brought shame to the country.
Instead today, Bank Negara allowed itself to be used by the alleged money-laundering suspects to acquit themselves.
Department of Special Affairs (Jasa) director-general and an UMNO warlord, Mohd Puad Zarkashi when explaining Dato’ Seri Najib Razak’s “donation” scandal, told students in Australia that the Prime Minister had discussed the matter with then Bank Negara governor Zeti Akthar Aziz and even received the central bank's approval to bring in the money.
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak has been accused of receiving more than US$1 billion (RM4.1 billion) in his personal account with AmBank Bhd, a sum which he had not denied.
Hence the question for Bank Negara is, did Dato’ Seri Najib Razak indeed obtained approval from Bank Negara and has the information on the source of funds been diligently verified since it has brought disrepute to the country?
Segambut Member of Parliament, Lim Lip Eng had already submitted a letter on 5 August 2015 asking the central bank to clarify if the transaction complied with the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2013 (“AMLA”).
Under Section 4 of the Act, any person is deemed to have committed an offence if he or she:
a) engages, directly or indirectly, in a transaction that involves proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence;
b) acquires, receives, possesses, disguises, transfers, converts, exchanges, carries, disposes of or uses proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence;
c) removes from or brings into Malaysia, proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence; or
d) conceals, disguises or impedes the establishment of the true nature, origin, location, movement, disposition, title of, rights with respect to, or ownership of, proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence,
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his UMNO cheerleaders have insisted that the incredibly large sums the Prime Minister received were “donations” from an unnamed Middle-Eastern individual. However, that excuse, even if it were unbelievably true, does not absolve the Prime Minster from the purview of AMLA. That is because even a “donation” could have originated from illegal and illicit sources via complex money-laundering mechanisms.
Bank Negara Malaysia, as the “competent authority” under the AMLA, must confirm if the Prime Minister has been investigated under the law and if he has been cleared. Silence from Bank Negara is not an option.
The failure to investigate or confirm the above would only mean that the central bank has abdicated its powers and severely neglected its responsibility to protect the integrity of our financial system, especially when compared to the actions of foreign central banks to date.
Simultaneously, the Monetary Authority of Singapore shut down BSI Bank operations in the island-state. The grounds provided include "serious breaches of anti-money laundering requirements, poor management oversight of the bank's operations and gross misconduct by some of the bank's staff".
In contrast, what has Bank Negara done to protect the integrity of our financial system? Despite the fact that Malaysia is being ridiculed globally and cited as an example of a rogue state run by kleptocrats, Bank Negara has barely bared its purportedly powerful fangs to indict those who have been responsible.
Despite being arguably the most “aggressive” regulatory agency to investigate 1MDB in Malaysia, Bank Negara barely scratched the surface of the entire scandal.
The central bank had made hue and cry over how 1MDB illegally transferred US$1.83 billion overseas, and the demands that 1MDB return the funds immediately. But it all ended with a whimper when Bank Negara agreed to close the chapter by slapping 1MDB on the wrist with a compound. 1MDB proudly issued a statement that it has paid the fine yesterday.
To rub salt on Malaysians’ wounds, the quantum of the fine was undisclosed, so it could be a pitiful RM4,000 for all we know.
Hence instead of becoming the agency which acts without fear or favour that Malaysians are proud of, Bank Negara has blemished it’s much-vaulted reputation and brought shame to the country.
Instead today, Bank Negara allowed itself to be used by the alleged money-laundering suspects to acquit themselves.
Department of Special Affairs (Jasa) director-general and an UMNO warlord, Mohd Puad Zarkashi when explaining Dato’ Seri Najib Razak’s “donation” scandal, told students in Australia that the Prime Minister had discussed the matter with then Bank Negara governor Zeti Akthar Aziz and even received the central bank's approval to bring in the money.
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak has been accused of receiving more than US$1 billion (RM4.1 billion) in his personal account with AmBank Bhd, a sum which he had not denied.
Hence the question for Bank Negara is, did Dato’ Seri Najib Razak indeed obtained approval from Bank Negara and has the information on the source of funds been diligently verified since it has brought disrepute to the country?
Segambut Member of Parliament, Lim Lip Eng had already submitted a letter on 5 August 2015 asking the central bank to clarify if the transaction complied with the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2013 (“AMLA”).
Under Section 4 of the Act, any person is deemed to have committed an offence if he or she:
a) engages, directly or indirectly, in a transaction that involves proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence;
b) acquires, receives, possesses, disguises, transfers, converts, exchanges, carries, disposes of or uses proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence;
c) removes from or brings into Malaysia, proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence; or
d) conceals, disguises or impedes the establishment of the true nature, origin, location, movement, disposition, title of, rights with respect to, or ownership of, proceeds of an unlawful activity or instrumentalities of an offence,
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his UMNO cheerleaders have insisted that the incredibly large sums the Prime Minister received were “donations” from an unnamed Middle-Eastern individual. However, that excuse, even if it were unbelievably true, does not absolve the Prime Minster from the purview of AMLA. That is because even a “donation” could have originated from illegal and illicit sources via complex money-laundering mechanisms.
Bank Negara Malaysia, as the “competent authority” under the AMLA, must confirm if the Prime Minister has been investigated under the law and if he has been cleared. Silence from Bank Negara is not an option.
The failure to investigate or confirm the above would only mean that the central bank has abdicated its powers and severely neglected its responsibility to protect the integrity of our financial system, especially when compared to the actions of foreign central banks to date.
Does Deputy Minister of Finance Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani really want to become the butt of jokes like his predecessor Datuk Ahmad Maslan?
I am stunned to hear the normally intelligent (at least while he was a backbencher) Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani respond to questions in Parliament with regards to the monster scandal 1MDB.
Yesterday, he told the Parliament that “the government has never claimed that 1MDB was a good investment”. He added that it was the wrong business model, weak management and poor governance were the three reasons that (contributed to) 1MDB's lack of competitiveness.
For years, ever since I submitted my first question on 1MDB in Parliament on March 2010, the standard “copy and paste” replies by the Prime Minister’s Department and the Ministry of Finance was to say that 1MDB will be the “strategic enabler for new ideas and sources of growth” which will “drive sustainable economic development by forging strategic global partnerships and promoting foreign direct investment”.
In October 2014, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak himself told the Member of Parliament for Bagan, Lim Guan Eng that “1MDB had never missed its obligations to fulfill its financing schedules. 1MDB’s financial position remains strong, supported by strategic assets with proven track records as well strong growth opportunities.”
This was repeated in Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s replies in Parliament to me on 6 November 2014 which claimed that “1MDB’s financial position remains strong, supported by strategic assets with proven performance records, on top of solid growth opportunities.”
The former Deputy Finance Minister was so gung-ho as to declare that 1MDB will return to profitability for its financial year ending March 2015. The rest is history. Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s tenure was short-lived as he was a walking disaster defending 1MDB and the other key issue of Goods and Services Tax.
Datuk Ahmad Maslan was so bad, he had to apologise in Parliament after the Member of Parliament for Pandan, Rafizi Ramli submitted a motion to refer him to the House Committee of Rights and Privileges for misleading the house when responding to questions on 1MDB.
It appears the Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani is keen to follow Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s footsteps. After years of gloating about 1MDB, the new Deputy Finance Minister has the cheek to come to Parliament to tell Malaysians that “the Government never claimed that 1MDB was a good investment”.
If the Government never believed that 1MDB “was a good investment”, why didn’t the Government shut it down much earlier before it incurred up to RM55 billion of debt and became the single biggest financial scandal in the history of Malaysia? If Datuk Johari’s assertion is really true, then the BN Government must be the stupidest Government in the whole world for sticking with the 1MDB investment despite knowing that it is not a good investment.
Yesterday, he told the Parliament that “the government has never claimed that 1MDB was a good investment”. He added that it was the wrong business model, weak management and poor governance were the three reasons that (contributed to) 1MDB's lack of competitiveness.
For years, ever since I submitted my first question on 1MDB in Parliament on March 2010, the standard “copy and paste” replies by the Prime Minister’s Department and the Ministry of Finance was to say that 1MDB will be the “strategic enabler for new ideas and sources of growth” which will “drive sustainable economic development by forging strategic global partnerships and promoting foreign direct investment”.
In October 2014, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak himself told the Member of Parliament for Bagan, Lim Guan Eng that “1MDB had never missed its obligations to fulfill its financing schedules. 1MDB’s financial position remains strong, supported by strategic assets with proven track records as well strong growth opportunities.”
This was repeated in Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s replies in Parliament to me on 6 November 2014 which claimed that “1MDB’s financial position remains strong, supported by strategic assets with proven performance records, on top of solid growth opportunities.”
The former Deputy Finance Minister was so gung-ho as to declare that 1MDB will return to profitability for its financial year ending March 2015. The rest is history. Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s tenure was short-lived as he was a walking disaster defending 1MDB and the other key issue of Goods and Services Tax.
Datuk Ahmad Maslan was so bad, he had to apologise in Parliament after the Member of Parliament for Pandan, Rafizi Ramli submitted a motion to refer him to the House Committee of Rights and Privileges for misleading the house when responding to questions on 1MDB.
It appears the Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani is keen to follow Datuk Ahmad Maslan’s footsteps. After years of gloating about 1MDB, the new Deputy Finance Minister has the cheek to come to Parliament to tell Malaysians that “the Government never claimed that 1MDB was a good investment”.
If the Government never believed that 1MDB “was a good investment”, why didn’t the Government shut it down much earlier before it incurred up to RM55 billion of debt and became the single biggest financial scandal in the history of Malaysia? If Datuk Johari’s assertion is really true, then the BN Government must be the stupidest Government in the whole world for sticking with the 1MDB investment despite knowing that it is not a good investment.
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
BSI Bank directed to shut down in Singapore due to offences linked to 1MDB, but what will happen to the purported US$940 million worth of "units" parked there?
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak’s brainchild, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) continued its giant-slaying run after it directly caused the collapse of BSI Bank.
Switzerland's Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has commenced criminal proceedings against BSI SA Bank for allegedly failing to prevent offences linked to 1MDB.
"The criminal proceedings opened on May 23 against BSI SA are based on information revealed by the criminal proceedings related to 1MDB and on issues raised in the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) of May 23. The information suggests that the offences of money laundering and bribery of foreign public officials currently under investigation in the context of the 1MDB case could have been prevented had BSI SA been adequately organised," it said.
Simultaneously, the Monetary Authority of Singapore shut down BSI Bank operations in the island-state. The grounds provided include "serious breaches of anti-money laundering requirements, poor management oversight of the bank's operations and gross misconduct by some of the bank's staff".
This is perhaps 1MDB’s most notable achievement to date because such action has not been taken by the Singapore authorities in the last 32 years.
It is unfortunate that while foreign regulatory authorities are taking stern and punitive actions against individuals, organisations and financial institutions to protect the integrity and reputation of their financial systems and the rule of law, the corresponding Malaysian institutions are trying their best skirt around the massive crime against the state.
While Bank Negara Malaysia was deemed the most “aggressive” institution to investigate and penalise 1MDB and the banks under its purview, at the end of the day 1MDB was barely slapped on the wrist with a compound of an undisclosed sum. The crooks behind the multi-billion dollar scandal were perhaps properly tickled.
The closure of BSI Bank, Singapore however, piled additional pressure on 1MDB to prove its holdings in the Bank. 1MDB President Arul Kanda has testified to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in January this year that US$940 million (RM3.8 billion) worth of mysterious “units” remained safely parked in BSI Bank, Singapore.
With the closure of the Bank, will these assets evaporate together with the Bank?
Otherwise, 1MDB must now “move” this purported “units” to another financial institution. We call upon 1MDB and the Minister of Finance, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak to explain the steps which will be taken to withdraw the US$940 million worth of assets from BSI Bank and which Bank will they move these assets to.
Better still, 1MDB should liquidate and repatriate the entire sum back to Malaysia to fund its local projects in Bandar Malaysia and Tun Razak Exchange which are in desperate need for financial support.
It should be noted that despite repeated requests by both the Auditor-General and the PAC, 1MDB has adamantly refused to provide bank statements and supporting documents in relation to the above US$940 million of “units” to justify its existence and worth. The US$940 million forms part of the US$7 billion worth of cash, assets and transactions which could not be verified by the Auditor-General.
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and Arul Kanda both fail to explain what will happen to the RM940 million “units” from BSI Bank. If not, they have been caught with their pants down lying outright to the Parliament and to the Malaysian public once again. Malaysians can hence safely conclude that the RM940 million of “units” never existed and the monies have been lost or stolen by the powers that be.
Switzerland's Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has commenced criminal proceedings against BSI SA Bank for allegedly failing to prevent offences linked to 1MDB.
"The criminal proceedings opened on May 23 against BSI SA are based on information revealed by the criminal proceedings related to 1MDB and on issues raised in the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) of May 23. The information suggests that the offences of money laundering and bribery of foreign public officials currently under investigation in the context of the 1MDB case could have been prevented had BSI SA been adequately organised," it said.
Simultaneously, the Monetary Authority of Singapore shut down BSI Bank operations in the island-state. The grounds provided include "serious breaches of anti-money laundering requirements, poor management oversight of the bank's operations and gross misconduct by some of the bank's staff".
This is perhaps 1MDB’s most notable achievement to date because such action has not been taken by the Singapore authorities in the last 32 years.
It is unfortunate that while foreign regulatory authorities are taking stern and punitive actions against individuals, organisations and financial institutions to protect the integrity and reputation of their financial systems and the rule of law, the corresponding Malaysian institutions are trying their best skirt around the massive crime against the state.
While Bank Negara Malaysia was deemed the most “aggressive” institution to investigate and penalise 1MDB and the banks under its purview, at the end of the day 1MDB was barely slapped on the wrist with a compound of an undisclosed sum. The crooks behind the multi-billion dollar scandal were perhaps properly tickled.
The closure of BSI Bank, Singapore however, piled additional pressure on 1MDB to prove its holdings in the Bank. 1MDB President Arul Kanda has testified to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in January this year that US$940 million (RM3.8 billion) worth of mysterious “units” remained safely parked in BSI Bank, Singapore.
With the closure of the Bank, will these assets evaporate together with the Bank?
Otherwise, 1MDB must now “move” this purported “units” to another financial institution. We call upon 1MDB and the Minister of Finance, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak to explain the steps which will be taken to withdraw the US$940 million worth of assets from BSI Bank and which Bank will they move these assets to.
Better still, 1MDB should liquidate and repatriate the entire sum back to Malaysia to fund its local projects in Bandar Malaysia and Tun Razak Exchange which are in desperate need for financial support.
It should be noted that despite repeated requests by both the Auditor-General and the PAC, 1MDB has adamantly refused to provide bank statements and supporting documents in relation to the above US$940 million of “units” to justify its existence and worth. The US$940 million forms part of the US$7 billion worth of cash, assets and transactions which could not be verified by the Auditor-General.
Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and Arul Kanda both fail to explain what will happen to the RM940 million “units” from BSI Bank. If not, they have been caught with their pants down lying outright to the Parliament and to the Malaysian public once again. Malaysians can hence safely conclude that the RM940 million of “units” never existed and the monies have been lost or stolen by the powers that be.
Did the PAC Chairman hide BNM letter from its members because the letter exposed Jho Low as Good Star Limited's ultimate beneficiary?
Together with my opposition colleagues in the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), we have repeatedly requested that representatives from Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) be summoned to testify with regards to the 1MDB scandal.
This is especially since BNM has openly indicted 1MDB for breaching the Financial Services and Exchange Controls Act. BNM has further demanded that 1MDB repatriate US$1.83 billion, the sum which was deemed to have been improperly transferred overseas.
It could not have been clearer that BNM was in possession of critical information which was integral to PAC’s investigation into 1MDB. However, the PAC Chairman repeatedly refused to summon BNM, claiming that the Attorney-General has already acquitted 1MDB and any information from BNM will be irrelevant.
However, the Chairman finally decided to write to BNM to seek written clarification in lieu of an official testimony.
The PAC has received the first letter from BNM dated 23 March 2016 which was presented to the members by the Chairman on 4 April 2016.
This letter had explained in detail the breaches by 1MDB and at the same time disclosed that the ultimate beneficiary of Good Star Limited, a company which received a whopping US$1.03 billion from 1MDB was “an individual unrelated to Petrosaudi International Limited”.
The members of the PAC then requested that the Chairman write to BNM again to seek further clarification with regards to this mysterious owner of Good Star Limited.
This crucial disclosure was also included in the final approved PAC Report on 1MDB in the meeting on the 4th, but was surreptitiously deleted by Datuk Hasan Arifin from the version tabled to the Parliament on the 7th.
When PAC members demanded to know why the Chairman unilaterally deleted the above information from the report without consulting the members of the committee at our next meeting on 18th May, we were shocked to discover that the Chairman has already received a response from BNM on 6th April.
Datuk Hasan Arifin claimed that the previously undisclosed second letter noted that the information provided by BNM was privileged, and hence he took the unilateral step to delete the relevant sentences from the finalised Report.
However, we were further shocked when the Chairman insisted that we take his word to be the Gospel truth when he refused to share the response of Bank Negara with the committee members. If the letter did, and merely substantiated his claims that the information was privileged, then why the unprecedented refusal to disclose the full contents of the letter to the PAC?
The incident became an absolute farce when the Chairman refused to even disclose the number of pages of the BNM letter, backed by PAC members from Barisan Nasional.
This has led the opposition members in the PAC to believe that the Chairman is blatantly hiding and obstructing the investigations into the shenanigans which took place in 1MDB. In fact, I will go further to suggest that Datuk Hasan Arifin is intentionally covering up for 1MDB and the Prime Minister because Bank Negara confirmed what the whole world already suspected, that Low Taek Jho or better known as Jho Low is the ultimate beneficiary of Good Star Limited.
We call upon Datuk Hasan Arifin to confirm or deny if Jho Low is indeed the sole shareholder ofI Good Star Limited. If Bank Negara did indeed name and confirm Jho Low, then the PAC Chairman must immediately resign from his position for failing to uphold the integrity of the Parliament and for clear cut obstruction of justice to thwart an independent and transparent investigation into the single largest scandal in the of Malaysia.
This is especially since BNM has openly indicted 1MDB for breaching the Financial Services and Exchange Controls Act. BNM has further demanded that 1MDB repatriate US$1.83 billion, the sum which was deemed to have been improperly transferred overseas.
It could not have been clearer that BNM was in possession of critical information which was integral to PAC’s investigation into 1MDB. However, the PAC Chairman repeatedly refused to summon BNM, claiming that the Attorney-General has already acquitted 1MDB and any information from BNM will be irrelevant.
However, the Chairman finally decided to write to BNM to seek written clarification in lieu of an official testimony.
The PAC has received the first letter from BNM dated 23 March 2016 which was presented to the members by the Chairman on 4 April 2016.
This letter had explained in detail the breaches by 1MDB and at the same time disclosed that the ultimate beneficiary of Good Star Limited, a company which received a whopping US$1.03 billion from 1MDB was “an individual unrelated to Petrosaudi International Limited”.
The members of the PAC then requested that the Chairman write to BNM again to seek further clarification with regards to this mysterious owner of Good Star Limited.
This crucial disclosure was also included in the final approved PAC Report on 1MDB in the meeting on the 4th, but was surreptitiously deleted by Datuk Hasan Arifin from the version tabled to the Parliament on the 7th.
When PAC members demanded to know why the Chairman unilaterally deleted the above information from the report without consulting the members of the committee at our next meeting on 18th May, we were shocked to discover that the Chairman has already received a response from BNM on 6th April.
Datuk Hasan Arifin claimed that the previously undisclosed second letter noted that the information provided by BNM was privileged, and hence he took the unilateral step to delete the relevant sentences from the finalised Report.
However, we were further shocked when the Chairman insisted that we take his word to be the Gospel truth when he refused to share the response of Bank Negara with the committee members. If the letter did, and merely substantiated his claims that the information was privileged, then why the unprecedented refusal to disclose the full contents of the letter to the PAC?
The incident became an absolute farce when the Chairman refused to even disclose the number of pages of the BNM letter, backed by PAC members from Barisan Nasional.
This has led the opposition members in the PAC to believe that the Chairman is blatantly hiding and obstructing the investigations into the shenanigans which took place in 1MDB. In fact, I will go further to suggest that Datuk Hasan Arifin is intentionally covering up for 1MDB and the Prime Minister because Bank Negara confirmed what the whole world already suspected, that Low Taek Jho or better known as Jho Low is the ultimate beneficiary of Good Star Limited.
We call upon Datuk Hasan Arifin to confirm or deny if Jho Low is indeed the sole shareholder ofI Good Star Limited. If Bank Negara did indeed name and confirm Jho Low, then the PAC Chairman must immediately resign from his position for failing to uphold the integrity of the Parliament and for clear cut obstruction of justice to thwart an independent and transparent investigation into the single largest scandal in the of Malaysia.
Thursday, March 19, 2015
Dato' Seri Najib And Jho Low's Identical Responses To Questions: Mere Coincidence?
Why are Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and Jho Low giving the same standard reply which doesn’t answer the question of the latter’s role in 1Malaysia Development Bhd?
When Member of Parliament for Wangsa Maju, Dr Tan Kee Kwong asked the question on 12 March 2015 on whether there was any business transactions or dealings between 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and Jho Low, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak provided a short and curt answer.He said “Mr Low Taek Jho never worked in 1MDB and all 1MDB decisions and transactions are made by the management and the Board of Director of 1MDB”.Why are the responses from the Finance Minister and Jho Low so strikingly similar in not directly answering the questions posed?
When Member of Parliament for Wangsa Maju, Dr Tan Kee Kwong asked the question on 12 March 2015 on whether there was any business transactions or dealings between 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and Jho Low, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak provided a short and curt answer.He said “Mr Low Taek Jho never worked in 1MDB and all 1MDB decisions and transactions are made by the management and the Board of Director of 1MDB”.Why are the responses from the Finance Minister and Jho Low so strikingly similar in not directly answering the questions posed?
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Where Is 1MDB Global Investment Limited's US$3 Billion?
Where is our Government-guaranteed 1MDB Global Investment Limited’s US$3 billion?
Deputy Finance Minister, Datuk Ahmad Maslan had repeatedly denied that the Government had issued a “letter of support” for 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) via its subsidiary 1MDB Global Investment Limited to raise a US$3 billion bond on the 6 November 2014. He was subsequently forced to apologise embarrassingly to the August House on 18 November 2014 by conceding that there was such a letter.
However, he had insisted in his apology and revision of his Hansard speech that the letter does not tantamount to a guarantee.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Second Finance Minister Must Be Joking That 1MDB's Cashflow Problems Can Be Solved This Year
Dato’ Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah must be joking to claim that 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) is facing only cashflow problems which will be resolved by the end of this year.
During the last parliamentary sitting, Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan assured Malaysians that 1Malaysia Development Bhd’s losses were temporary and “it will return to profitability” for the financial year ending March 2015.
The Deputy Finance Minister spoke to reporters during a press conference on 21 November 2015 after 1MDB reported its first annual losses of RM665 million for its March 2014 accounts.
As we approached the end of March 2015 financial year, the Datuk Ahmad Maslan prophecy of 1MDB making profits looks as remote as any attempt to grow money on trees. It showed clearly that we had a Deputy Finance Minister who had no grasp of the subject matter.
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Sarawak Report Chief Investigate Journalist To Join "1MDB: The Ultimate Low Down" Forum
Sarawak Report’s Clare Rewcastle will join the “1MDB: The Ultimate Low Down” Forum via video conference.
This press release is to announce that Sarawak Report’s chief investigative journalist, Clare Rewcastle will be joining the forum “1MDB: The Ultimate Low Down” via video conference.
This press release is to announce that Sarawak Report’s chief investigative journalist, Clare Rewcastle will be joining the forum “1MDB: The Ultimate Low Down” via video conference.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Minister Of Finance II Completely Deluded To Think IPO Can Solve 1MDB's Cashflow Problems
Minister of Finance II must be completely deluded to believe that an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of 1MDB’s energy subsidiary will solve 1MDB’s cashflow problems.
The Second Minister of Finance, Dato’ Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah told the Dewan Rakyat that the government is hoping that the initial public offering (IPO) from 1MDB's energy arm would be able to pay for the company's growing debts.
"1MDB's stumbling block is it's cash flow. But once the IPO is up, this would be settled," he said.
Dato’ Seri Husni must be completely deluding himself, or has been deluded by 1MDB to actually believe that the IPO of 1MDB’s energy arm will rescue the RM42 billion indebted Ministry of Finance subsidiary.
The Second Minister of Finance, Dato’ Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah told the Dewan Rakyat that the government is hoping that the initial public offering (IPO) from 1MDB's energy arm would be able to pay for the company's growing debts.
"1MDB's stumbling block is it's cash flow. But once the IPO is up, this would be settled," he said.
Dato’ Seri Husni must be completely deluding himself, or has been deluded by 1MDB to actually believe that the IPO of 1MDB’s energy arm will rescue the RM42 billion indebted Ministry of Finance subsidiary.
Thursday, March 12, 2015
SRC International Investment In Gobi Coal: Yet Another 1MDB-like Scandal?
Is SRC International’s 50:50 joint venture with Mongolian company, Gobi Coal & Energy Ltd another multi-billion ringgit PetroSaudi-like scam waiting to be exposed?
SRC International Sdn Bhd is an anonymous-sounding company owned by the Ministry of Finance. However, a peek into the company’s short history and balance sheet raises plenty of suspicion-arousing question marks.
I have asked for my oral question yesterday on whether SRC International Sdn Bhd had invested in a Mongolian energy company and what are the details of the investment and its current status. I received the shortest of written response from the Minsitry of Finance late yesterday afternoon.
SRC International Sdn Bhd is an anonymous-sounding company owned by the Ministry of Finance. However, a peek into the company’s short history and balance sheet raises plenty of suspicion-arousing question marks.
I have asked for my oral question yesterday on whether SRC International Sdn Bhd had invested in a Mongolian energy company and what are the details of the investment and its current status. I received the shortest of written response from the Minsitry of Finance late yesterday afternoon.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Bank Negara Malaysia To Investigate Jho Low For Potential Money Laundering
Low Taek Jho and his associates must be investigated for possible money laundering in the acquisition of UBG Bhd via PetroSaudi International (Seycelles) Ltd using illicitly obtained funds from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)
Over the past few days, both the Sarawak Report and The Edge Malaysia exposed how a 28 year old Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) had engineered the acquisition of Utama Banking Group Bhd (UBG) via PetroSaudi International (Seychelles) Limited (PSI Seychelles) in 2010. UBG was a company owned by the former Chief Minister of Sarawak, Tun Taib Mahmud.
PSI Seycelles via its wholly owned subsidiary, Javace Sdn Bhd made a general offer to acquire all UBG shares for a total of RM1.4 billion on 29 September 2010. AmInvestment Bank Bhd had provided RM700 million to finance this acquisition.
Over the past few days, both the Sarawak Report and The Edge Malaysia exposed how a 28 year old Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) had engineered the acquisition of Utama Banking Group Bhd (UBG) via PetroSaudi International (Seychelles) Limited (PSI Seychelles) in 2010. UBG was a company owned by the former Chief Minister of Sarawak, Tun Taib Mahmud.
PSI Seycelles via its wholly owned subsidiary, Javace Sdn Bhd made a general offer to acquire all UBG shares for a total of RM1.4 billion on 29 September 2010. AmInvestment Bank Bhd had provided RM700 million to finance this acquisition.
Monday, March 09, 2015
Messaging Conversation Between PSI CEO And Jho Low Exposed
As the Finance Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak must confirm if he has given the go-ahead for 1Malaysia Development Bhd to extend additional US$500 million loans to PetroSaudi International Limited’s wholly-owned subsidiary?
For the very first time, emails exposed by the Sarawak Report on the monster 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal have implicated the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his possible involvement in the PetroSaudi International (PSI) collaboration fiasco.
In a messaging conversation where Patrick Mahony, CEO of PSI was expressing grave concern over the need for approval by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) for a fund transfer from 1MDB to the PSI subsidiary, Jho Low (JL) had insisted that only the Ministry of Finance approval for the loan is required, and the loan had already been signed by the Prime Minister, who is also the Finance Minister.
For the very first time, emails exposed by the Sarawak Report on the monster 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal have implicated the Prime Minister, Dato’ Seri Najib Razak and his possible involvement in the PetroSaudi International (PSI) collaboration fiasco.
In a messaging conversation where Patrick Mahony, CEO of PSI was expressing grave concern over the need for approval by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) for a fund transfer from 1MDB to the PSI subsidiary, Jho Low (JL) had insisted that only the Ministry of Finance approval for the loan is required, and the loan had already been signed by the Prime Minister, who is also the Finance Minister.
Saturday, March 07, 2015
Supporting Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's Statement On 1MDB
Full support for Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s statement on 1MDB.
The statement issued by Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on Friday evening on the simmering 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) crisis was the most sensible and responsible ever issued by any Cabinet Minister on the controversial issue.
The statement issued by Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on Friday evening on the simmering 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) crisis was the most sensible and responsible ever issued by any Cabinet Minister on the controversial issue.
Dato' Seri Najib Razak's Defamation Suit
I will not be shackled by the defamation suit brought by the Dato’ Seri Najib Razak because I am supported by millions of Malaysians out there who demand good governance, transparency and accountability from the Prime Minister and his Government.
My lawyer, Gobind Singh who is also the Member of Parliament for Puchong, has received the writ served by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak’s lawyers at 4.30pm yesterday evening.
The suit by the Prime Minister accused me of having defamed him in my speech at a DAP Petaling Jaya Fund-Raising Dinner on 3 November 2014 where I spoke extensively on the “mother of the mother of the mother of all scandals”, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
My lawyer, Gobind Singh who is also the Member of Parliament for Puchong, has received the writ served by Dato’ Seri Najib Razak’s lawyers at 4.30pm yesterday evening.
The suit by the Prime Minister accused me of having defamed him in my speech at a DAP Petaling Jaya Fund-Raising Dinner on 3 November 2014 where I spoke extensively on the “mother of the mother of the mother of all scandals”, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)