DAP Sarawak Election Fund-Raising Dinner @ Petaling Jaya 2012

Help us spread the event by sharing our Facebook Event Page!

Dear friends & supporters,

As the 13th General Election approaches, widely speculated to be held in May 2012, expectations are high among many people in urban constituencies for Pakatan Rakyat to take over the Federal Government.

However, for Pakatan Rakyat to succeed, we must succeed in making major inroads in East Malaysia, particularly in Sarawak. To have a realistic chance of victory, Pakatan Rakyat needs to win 18 parliamentary seats in Sabah & Sarawak, with possibly 12 coming from the Land of Hornbills.

The DAP will be contesting and campaigning hard in many of Sarawak's rural and remote constituencies which require heavy logistical expenses. These rural seats are often poor and the candidates are not able to generate sufficient funding from local sources to launch a serious campaign.

Hence DAP Sarawak is holding a fund-raising campaign dinner in the Klang Valley to give our candidates in these difficult seats a fighting chance to defeat Barisan Nasional.

Theme: "One Big Step for Sarawak, One Giant Step for Malaysia"
Venue: MBPJ Civic Centre (Banquet Hall)
Date: 10 April 2012 (Tuesday)
Time: 7.30pm

The speakers will include:

• Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary Leader 
• Richard Wong Ho Leng, MP Sibu
• Chong Chieng Jen, MP Bandar Kuching
• Dr John Anthony Brian, Dayak Consultative Council Chairman
• Leon Jimat Donald, DAP Sarawak Asst Publicity Secretary
• Mordi Bimol, Special Asst to MP Bandar Kuching

The primary language for this dinner will be English and Bahasa Malaysia. Halal or vegetarian food is available upon request.

The cost of the dinner will be RM60 per pax or RM600 per Silver table. Gold sponsorship tables are available for RM1,500 table.

For reservations, please email to dapsarawak@rocketmail.com or to me directly with your name, contact number and number of seats or tables (Gold or Silver) required.

For those who are not able to make the dinner, donations are also very much welcome ;-). Cheques should be written to "DAP Sarawak".

If you have any more questions, you can call Rebecca Choong at +6014 9251527

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you!

p.s., tables are limited to 100 only, so reserve your seats today! Help us spread the event by sharing our Facebook Event Page!

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NFCorp Directors Took Out Cash

Global Biofuture Pte Ltd is another company set up by the Directors of National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) in Singapore in December 2008.  The Directors of the company are family members of Datuk Ser Shahrizat Jalil - Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, Wan Shahinur Izran Mohamad Salleh and Wan Izzana Fatimah Zabedah Mohamad Salleh.  Together with Wan Shahinur Izmir Mohamad Salleh (who is not a Director), they are shareholders of the company with 60,000 shares each, except for Izzana who owns 20,000 shares of S$1 each.

Based on the latest audited accounts available from the Singapore Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) dated 31 December 2010, it is stated that the Directors owes the company the sum of S$4,975,415 (RM11.98 million).  In addition, the sole shareholder who is not a director also owes the company the amount of S$60,000 (RM144,000) (page 24 under “8. Other Receivables”

In previous exposes, we have accused NFCorp Directors of abusing the RM250 million soft loan to NFCorp for the purposes of rearing cattles to acquire luxury properties in Malaysia and Singapore.  The Directors have defended the move claiming that “it was deemed more astute business to invest in property in the short-term rather than just placing NFCorp monies in money market instruments”.

We have also accused the Directors of abusing the NFCorp loan to invest in unrelated businesses contrary to the purpose specified in the loan agreement, such as in restaurants and supermarkets in Singapore.  However, the Directors have defended the moves as a means of marketing and promotion of their beef products (even if it did not really make business sense).

As weak as the defense of the above abuses – acquisition of properties and investment in unauthorised businesses – at least they were plausible excuses.  However, there can be no defense at all to the fact that the Directors have withdrawn a sum of nearly RM12 million directly from Global Biofuture Pte Ltd.

The Audited Accounts also states that Global Biofuture owes a sum of S$7,935,877 (RM19.1 million) to other companies related to the Directors of the company (page 20 under “10. Other Payables”.  Therefore, we have strong reasons to believe that Global Biofuture is part the Shahrizat family group of companies – including National Meat and Livestock Sdn Bhd, Real Food Company Sdn Bhd, Meatworks (Singapore) Pte Ltd – all of which sources its funds from the RM250 million loan provided by the Malaysian government.

The transfer of monies to the respective directors are clear cut criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of public funds meant for specific purposes which must be investigated thoroughly by the Royal Malaysian Police and Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).  The Attorney-General must not hesitate to prosecute the directors of NFCorp for such blatant in-your-face abuses.

At the same time, Section 162 of the Singapore Companies Act “prohibits loans from a company to a director of a company”.  Even if in the event a company wishes to extend a loan to a director under approved exceptional circumstances, the “approval of the company must be obtained at a general meeting at which the purposes of the expenditure and the amount of the loan or the extent of the guarantee or security, as the case may be, are disclosed”.s

The audited accounts of the company as well as searches with ACRA have revealed absolutely no evidence of any such approval under these permitted exceptional circumstances have been obtained.

The mystery of Global Biofuture deepens when the specified principal activity of the company is “trading in food and fuel” which is quite different from that of rearing cattle.  The audited accounts showed that the company was able to generate sales of S$2.94 million in the 6 months from July 2010 to December 2010 (page 7).  However, it was noted that out of the sales revenue, S$2.87 million or 97.6% of the sales were made to a company related to the directors (page 22 under “5. Related Party Transactions”).  The question hence arises as to why the Directors are setting up a company to essentially sell to themselves?

The fact that “there are no key management personnel apart from the company's directors” (page 28) raises the suspicion that the company is acting purely as a vehicle to personally profit from sales of goods sold to other companies in the family’s group of companies, or for the evasion of tax.

The extent of chicanery in Shahrizat family’s group of companies continues to shock and amaze me, and I am sure all Malaysians.  The Government, represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Finance, the Attorney-General, the Royal Malaysian Police as well as MACC must leave no stone unturned in the efforts to bring the guilty parties to book and ensure that every sen of tax-payers’ funds be recoverable.

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Will There Be More Charges on NFCorp Directors?

Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, the executive chairman and director of NFCorp was charged under Section 409 of the Penal Code relating to CBT for misappropriating RM9,758,140 from NFCorp’s funds to purchase two condominium units at the One Menerung complex in Bangsar for the National Meat and Livestock Corporation (NMLC) on December 1 and December 4, 2009.

Mohamad Salleh was also charged under the same section for transferring RM40 million of NFCorp’s funds to the National Meat and Livestock Company (NMLC) between May 6 and November 16, 2009.

He was further charged in both cases for using the said funds without any approval from company’s annual general meeting, which is an offence under Section 132 of the Companies Act 1965.

We welcome the step by the Attorney-General to finally place charges against Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh, after months of exposes on wrongdoings and abuse of power by the directors of NFCorp after receiving a RM250 million soft loan from the Government.

However, the four charges above are far from complete and we expect the Attorney-General to bring to book all directors who were involved in the abuses which have been raised by Pakatan Rakyat parliamentarians.

For example, the purchase of two condominiums at One Menerung amounting to RM9.8 million are certainly not the only properties purchased with the Government’s RM250 million soft loan.  There are probably dozens of properties which have been exposed which were purchased with Government funds, but placed under the directors’ personal names.  These properties will include land in Gemas and Putrajaya, as well as condominiums in Singapore.  The condominiums in Singapore include the posh Orchard Scotts Residences for RM10 million as well as 2 units at the Marina Bay Suites worth more than RM15 million each.  These purchases have yet to include possibly even more properties which have not surfaced.

On top of property purchases, it has already been made known that these directors also owns in their personal names, other companies such as the NMLC, Real Food Company (RFC) and Meatworks Corporation Sdn Bhd which have failed for submit annual returns with audited accounts since 2007.  The failure to submit annual returns and other relevant documents to the Registrar of Companies is a gross breach of the Companies Act 1965 and can be subjected to 5 years jail and/or RM30,000 fine.

What is even more serious, is the fact that these Directors have transferred shares of companies to their own names after investing in these companies with money from the Government loan.  For example, shares in Meatworks (Singapore) Pte Ltd were distributed to Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh and his children from RFC in 2010.  These are clear cases of criminal breach of trust.

Finally, there is also the case of asset disposal by Wan Shahinur Izran, son of Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh and fellow director of NFCorp.  Izran was the sole shareholder and director of Straits Beverages Pte Ltd before it was disposed to a mysterious “Gold Index International Limited”, a company based in British Virgin Islands in December 2011.  This is despite the fact that funds derived from the RM250 million loan was used in the setting up and operations of the company.  Such disposal of assets will be a clear breach of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001.

The police and the Attorney-General must take immediate actions to stop such disposals and to charge the directors for the various abuses to ensure not only accountability, but also maximum recoverability of the funds extended by the Government to NFCorp.

The people can be assured that Pakatan Rakyat leaders will continue to expose the abuses by the family of Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil until all necessary actions are taken to ensure that they do not get off lightly with just the Shahrizat resigning as a Minister and her husband, Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh being charged for the above offences.

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Najib's High Approval Ratings Will Be Shortlived

Najib’s popularity does not reflect support for BN, says Pakatan
By Clara Chooi and Lisa J. Ariffin Mar 12, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, March 12 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers have said they are undaunted by the rise in Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s approval ratings, and have argued it does not necessarily mean stronger support for Barisan Nasional (BN) or the ruling Umno.

They attributed the prime minister’s increased popularity, which was particularly significant among those in the lower-income bracket, to his administration’s RM500 cash handouts to the same group under the Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia (BR1M) scheme rolled out recently.

But this, said Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua, would eventually lose steam once the scheme’s recipients exhaust every single ringgit and if Najib chooses to further delay calling the 13th general election.

[...]

Pua noted this finding, adding that PR takes “comfort” in the notion that Najib’s rising popularity may not mean the ruling coalition will perform better in the polls.

[...]

Pua said opposition leaders could counter the surge in Najib’s popularity by explaining to voters that BR1M was merely a one-off “vote-buying exercise”.

An exercise, he added, that will return to haunt voters in the form of higher taxes and prices after elections.

For the full article, click here.

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NFCorp Director Disposing Assets

Based on the Annual Returns submitted to the Registrar of Companies and Business (ACRA) in Singapore on 15 July 2011, Wan Shahinur Izran was also the director and sole shareholder of Straits Beverages Pte Ltd whose principal activity was to operate pubs (including bars).

However, based on the latest information provided by ACRA, the Company has since been “sold” to a British Virgin Islands (BVI) company – “Gold Index International Limited”, whose shareholders cannot be traced. Wan Shahinur Izran has also resigned from the company as a director on 2nd December 2011 and two new Singaporean directors were appointed.  They are Amir Mulyani bin Mohamed Solay and Alphonsus Wee Yew Hock who were appointed on 2nd and 16th December 2011 respectively.

This proves that the NFCorp director is either disposing or hiding his assets in Singapore.  Given that Straits Beverages was similarly set up with funds derived from the RM250 million government loan, such actions constitute a breach of the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001.

The Act defines “money laundering” as the act of a person who — “engages, directly or indirectly, in a transaction that involves proceeds of any unlawful activity” or “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 any unlawful activity”.

We call upon the police to not only investigate the above disposal of assets in Singapore, but also discover how much for NFC loan funds have been transferred to Straits Beverages before it was “sold” to other parties for sums unknown.

Despite a statement on the 14 January 2012 by the Prime Minister, Dato' Seri Najib Razak that the assets of the NFC have been frozen, it appears that the international assets of the NFCorps directors have been left untouched.  Hence we would also call upon the Police to request that all the directors’ international assets be frozen pending investigation to prevent further such disposal of assets.

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NFCorp Related Company Distributed Shares to Directors

The directors of NFCorp have admitted that the money has indeed been transferred to companies which they own and are not related to NFCorp.  However, they argued that these “so-called ‘unrelated companies’ of NFCorp where the fund was channeled to, were always meant to be the subsidiaries of NFCorp.”

The Chairman of NFCorp Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh had in earlier statements claimed that it was always their intention to “rationalise the structure of NFCorp to bring in all associated companies and assets within the hold of NFCorp”.

The key “unrelated companies” held by the directors operating in Malaysia are National Meat and Livestock Company Sdn Bhd (NMLC), Real Food Company Sdn Bhd (RFC) and Meatworks Corporation Sdn Bhd.

At the same time, many “unrelated companies” were also set up in Singapore.  For example, by April 2010, RFC has also invested at total of S$450,000 (RM1.08 million) for 450,000 shares in Meatworks (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

However, interestingly on 20 July 2010, shares owned by RFC in Meatworks (Singapore) were distributed to the individual directors of NFCorp.  RFC had transferred 90,000 shares to Mohamad Salleh and his three children, Wan Shahinur Izmir, Wan Shahinur Izran and Wan Izzana Fatimah Zabedah each, leaving RFC with only 90,000 shares.

The above transfer of shares to individual family members of Minister of Women and Family Affairs, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil indicates very clearly that there was obviously no intent to “rationalize the structure of NFCorp” by making these “unrelated companies” subsidiaries of NFCorp.  Had that been the original intent, what is the purpose of transferring the shares of Meatworks (Singapore) which is invested presumably with money from the RM250 million government loan, to the respective individuals?

In fact, the act that RFC had invested S$450,000 in Meatworks (Singapore) and subsequently transferred S$360,000 (RM865,000) of these shares to the individual directors is another clear case of criminal breach of trust.

We call upon the NFCorp directors to explain the above suspicious transaction, failing which we call upon the police and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to expand its investigations to cover the actions of all the Singapore companies owned by the directors.

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NFCorp Buys "Apartment" in Kazakhstan

It was exposed by The Malaysian Insider (TMI) that the police are investigating the fact that the directors of National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) has used part of the RM250 million government soft loan to purchase an “apartment” in Kazakhstan.  The apartment is said to be worth RM1.7 million.

What justification can there be now from NFCorp for such a purchase, which is understood to be an “all-cash” transaction?  Does the company even have any clue about the cattle industry in Kazakhstan, which is blessed with large tracts of the Central Asian Steppes or grasslands?  Are we planning to export beef to Kazakhstan or are we planning to buy meat from them?

If the TMI report is indeed accurate, then there was “a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was inked in June 2011 between NFCorp and the Jambyl district of Kazakhstan to raise cattle for export to Malaysia and neighbouring countries.”

While there is nothing intrinsically wrong with cattle imports as a business in Malaysia, the purpose of the RM250 million government loan is clearly not intended for such purposes.  The purpose as specifically defined in the loan agreement is to establish and operate “a National Feedlot Centre to be consistent with the Government of Malaysia’s policy of developing, promoting and nurturing the production of beef and beef products…”

Based on the loan agreement, NFCorp is certainly not meant to be acquiring meat from Kazakhstan, much less buying an “apartment” there.

We call on NFCorp to come clean on the Kazakhstan property purchase and confirm if the report by TMI is true.  In public interest, the following questions must be answered:

1. Did NFCorp acquire an “apartment” in Kazakhstan?
2. What was the full purchase price of the “apartment”?
3. Is the property registered to NFCorp or to individual directors of NFCorp?
4. What is the status and use of the “apartment” as of today?
5. Did the acquisition of the property in Kazakhstan receive the endorsement of the Ministry of Finance?

If NFCorp refuses to answer the above questions, then surely Datuk Seri Najib Razak, as the Minister of Finance and the governing authority over the RM250 million soft loan must surely respond over the preposterous scandal.  Datuk Seri Najib Razak must confirm if any approval has been given to NFCorp to acquire an “apartment” in Kazakhstan, whether the Ministry of Finance endorses such an acquisition and what actions will be taken by the Ministry to protect the interest of Malaysian tax-payers, if indeed such an acquisition is deemed highly improper.

The Prime Minister has no right to talk about “transformation”, “fighting corruption”  and ending “political patronage” if he does not even have the steel and ability to act tough on those who abuse power.  Malaysians are thoroughly disappointed that the NFCorp scandals have only grown in size and incredulity over the past 6 months and yet do not see an end in sight with the Government taking any decisive action.

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NFC "Subsidiaries" Never Audited

Various parties including myself have made the allegation that the directors of National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) has improperly siphoned money originating from the Government’s RM250 million meant for the development of the cattle industry in Malaysia.  The money, at least RM81 million as at 2009, has been transferred to various companies owned by the directors of NFCorp, as revealed in the 2009 NFCorp audited accounts.  This amount will definitely have exceeded RM100 million as of today.

The directors of NFCorp have admitted that the money has indeed been transferred to companies which they own and are not related to NFCorp.  However, they argued that these “so-called ‘unrelated companies’ of NFCorp where the fund was channeled to, were always meant to be the subsidiaries of NFCorp.”

The Chairman of NFCorp Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh had in earlier statements claimed that it was always their intention to “rationalise the structure of NFCorp to bring in all associated companies and assets within the hold of NFCorp”.

The key “unrelated companies” held by the directors operating in Malaysia are National Meat and Livestock Company Sdn Bhd (formerly known as BizVance Sdn Bhd) (NMLC), Real Food Company Sdn Bhd (formerly known as Macronial Technology Sdn Bhd) (RFC) and Meatworks Corporation Sdn Bhd.

The family members of Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil, Minister of Women and Family Affairs sit as directors in all these companies.  They are her husband Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh and their children, Wan Shahinur Izmir, Wan Shahinur Izran and Wan Izzana Fatimah Zabedah.  The shareholders of these companies are also various permutations the same family members and companies which they own.

If the argument made by the NFCorp directors that these companies were indeed “always meant to be subsidiaries of NFCorp”, then surely, one would expect the financial accounts of these companies to be properly managed to ensure accountability and transparency over the use of the tax-payers’ RM250 million loan.

However, a simple check with the Registrar of Companies shows that none of these companies were ever audited ever since they became operational!  Both NMLC and RFC for example, has never been audited since four and a half years ago on 30 June 2007 when it was still a dormant company with no revenue or assets.  Meatworks on the other hand, has never filed its accounts since it was set up on 17 September 2009.

Hence not only was the siphoning of funds to these companies owned by the directors of NFCorp a breach of trust, the directors were further negligent, intentionally or otherwise, in accounting for the use of the monies.  The directors of NFCorp must answer as to why NMLC and RFC have never filed their accounts or even presented to the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture as part of NFCorp’s loan agreement to provide updates on the use of the funds.

What is worse is the fact that the directors of these “unrelated companies” have further run afoul of the Companies Act 1965 by failing to hold the company’s Annual General Meetings, file its Annual Returns to the Registrar of Companies together with their Audited Financial Report.

For example, Clause 169(1) of the Companies Act says that “the directors of every company shall, at some date not later than eighteen months after the incorporation of the company and subsequently once at least in every calendar year at intervals of not more than fifteen months, lay before the company at its annual general meeting a profit and loss account for the period since the preceding account (or in the case of the first account, since the incorporation of the company) made up to a date not more than six months before the date of the meeting.

Under Clause 171(1), the Act dictates imprisonment for 5 years or RM30,000 “if any director of a company fails to comply or to take all reasonable steps to secure compliance by the company with the foregoing provisions of this Division or has by his own wilful act been the cause of any default by the company thereunder, he shall be guilty of an offence against this Act.”

The concern for all Malaysians today over the above scandal is that the Directors may take steps to paper over the scandal with backdated accounts which will then hide certain activities carried out by by RFC and NMLC with tax-payers’ money.

We would like to remind the auditors of these companies to be extra diligent and mindful in auditing the accounts as public interest is involved.  Under the Companies Act, it is the duty of an auditor of a company to form an opinion as to “whether he has obtained all the information and explanations that he required” and “whether proper accounting and other records (including registers) have been kept by the company”.

The Act further clarifies that if an auditor finds “a breach or non-observance of any of the provisions of this Act” and if such a breach is serious enough, “he shall forthwith report the matter in writing to the Registrar.”  The penalty for not fulfilling the duties of an appointed auditor is “imprisonment for two years or thirty thousand ringgit or both”.

The Auditor is also protected under the law in Clause 174A that “in the absence of malice on his part, [shall not] be liable to any action for defamation at the suit of any person in respect of any statement which he makes in the course of his duties as auditor”.

Regardless of the above, we call upon the Registrar of Companies to act against the directors of these companies which have flouted the law by using the powers vested in him – to initiate investigations and “to inspect any accounts, book or other document seized.”  The interest of Malaysians is paramount, and we call on all authorities to act without fear or favour to ensure that our rights are fully protected from those who abuse their powers.

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Why is 1MDB taking over Tanjong Energy?

The Singapore Straits Times reported last week that 1MDB has acquired Tanjong Energy Holdings (TEH) from Tan Sri Ananda Krishnan for RM8.5 billion.  Tanjong Energy owns and operates nine power plants in Bangladesh, Egypt and Malaysia and smaller joint ventures in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and United Arab Emirates.

While TEH is certainly a profitable business, there is hardly any justifiable reason for 1MDB to be making a RM8.5 billion investment to acquire it.

According to its own website, “1MDB is a strategic development company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia.  As a strategic enabler for new ideas and new sources of growth, 1MDB leads in market-driven initiatives to help transform Malaysia into a thriving economy.”

The acquisition of TEH hardly qualifies 1MDB as a “strategic enabler for new ideas” and the power generation business is certainly not by any reasonable definition a “new source of growth”.  While IPPs are crucial to any economy, 1MDB’s entry into Malaysia’s IPP scene will add little value as we have already got a crowded with IPP scene.  Malakoff Bhd, YTL Power and Genting Sanyen leads a list of more than 20 IPPs in the country today.

What’s more, the RM8.5 billion highest bid by 1MDB, 100% owned by the Malaysian Government appears to have paid handsomely to Ananda for the power generation assets of Tanjong PLC Bhd.  Less than 2 years ago, Ananda has acquired all shares of Tanjong PLC listed on Bursa Malaysia for RM8.8 billion.  Tanjong PLC had owned TEH, a gaming business and several other leisure and property assets.

Tanjong PLC had sold the gaming business to a private consortium for RM2 billion last year.  Adding that to the RM8.5 billion for TEH, Ananda has made a profit of RM1.7 billion (or 19.3% returns) on his RM8.8 billion “investment” in 2010.  Tanjong PLC continues to own its leisure and property assets.

The question that needs to be asked is whether this is a pay-off for Tan Sri Ananda Krishnan, who according to former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, made his billions as a direct result of his administration’s policies.

What is of greater concern however, is the manner which 1MDB is financing its business and operations, which is funded entirely by debt guaranteed by the Federal Government.

The last time it took a RM5 billion debt, it invested RM4.2 billion in a speculative PetroSaudi Joint Venture with PetroSaudi International company for an oil exploration project.  However, within 6 months, 1MDB converted its 40% investment in the joint venture into an 11-year loan to a company whose “track record” stretched back only to 2005.

The PetroSaudi stunt left 1MDB with very little cash for its new projects awarded without tender, by the Federal Government – the 160ha Bandar Malaysia in Sg Besi and the RM26 billion Kuala Lumpur International Financial District. Hence as it stands, 1MDB is already in need to secure further financing to develop these 2 mega projects.

Now, with the new RM8.5 billion investment in Tanjong Energy, there is absolutely no question that 1MDB will be the most leveraged company in Malaysia, with the risk entirely bourne by the tax-payers.  With absolutely not expertise or experience in oil and gas, property development and now, the power generation sector, 1MDB is setting itself up to become Malaysia’s mother of all bail-outs.  If it happens, it will be a disaster of epic proportions to our financial sector which will trigger possibly the worst economic crisis the country has ever faced.

The Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak must present an official ministerial paper to Parliament when it sits in the session commencing next week.  Brakes and risk management measures must be put in place to prevent the country from falling headlong into financial disaster.

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UMNO's Most Unapologetic "Apology"

As reported by Bernama on Saturday, the Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Najib Razak made the momentous apology to all Malaysians “on behalf of the Barisan Nasional (BN) for the coalition's mistakes in the last general election, which cost it several electoral seats and states, including Kedah.”

Today, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin tried to make light of the apology by boasting of Barisan Nasional’s (BN) achievement in the past few decades. He said "…during the 54-year period, no one can deny the fact, despite the weaknesses, we have made huge progress in the fields of socio-economy, culture, education, international relations and various others."

Muhyiddin had further wanted to avoid the subject by adding that “there is no need to list out our weaknesses; that is in the past.”

UMNO Information Chief Datuk Ahmad Maslan was even more dismissive of the Prime Minister’s apology. He had urged Malaysians “to provide BN the mandate to rule following the promise by Najib Abdul Razak that the coalition will fix its past mistakes”.

Their statements today have single-handedly destroyed any goodwill which may have arisen out of Najib’s apology made to Malaysian’s the previous day.  It demonstrates that BN remains as arrogant and as dismissive of Malaysian criticisms as ever and any chance of change will not happen if BN were to remain in power.

Muhyiddin made light of the need to list BN’s weakness because it was in the past and not present.  Ahmad Maslan on the other hand claimed that without return BN’s two-third majority in Parliament, the coalition is unable to fix its past mistakes.

The above only demonstrates the utter disarray and panic in the UMNO top leadership in facing the upcoming General Elections as all parties are contradicting each other over the same message to win votes.  While not wanting to contradict the Prime Minister directly over the apology which was made, UMNO leaders appear to be scrambling to contain its impact by making irrelevant the apology.

All UMNO leaders including the Prime Minister had missed the point that the apology is completely useless and lacks any semblance of credibility if it is not matched with deeds.  In fact it is rather late for Najib to be apologizing for the “past mistakes” prior to 2008, when he should be apologizing for not being able to correct these mistakes despite having been the Prime Minister for the past 3 years!

Malaysians vented their frustration at the BN government in 2008 over rampant corruption, cronyism and abuse of power.  Malaysians became more divided than ever due to BN’s divide-and-rule policies which plays off one race against the other.

However, after ascending the premiership for 3 years, Malaysians are not witnessing any improvements but only worsening conditions in the country.  Malaysia has dropped further in the Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) from 56th to 60th.  The BN government still lacks the political will to tackle grand corruption and cases of abuse of power as can be seen in recent scandals such as the RM250 million National Feedlot Corporation project.
On top of that, Najib is perpetuating patronage and cronyism in its administration by awarding mega-projects and concessions without any competitive tenders to well-known associates of the BN Government – such as the 60-year RM7.1 billion West Coast Expressway project.  The Government has also in the past year awarded many mega-contracts to entities related to Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary - the RM7.55 billion contract to DRB Hicom to supply 257 armoured personnel carriers, the new 1,000 Megawatt coal-powered plant concession to Malakoff Bhd and the appointment of MMC-Gamuda as the Project Development Partner of the RM53 billion Klang Valley MRT project.

Worse, instead of improving inter-faith and inter-racial relations over the past 3 years, the conditions have worsened with the Government’s obstinate insistence on banning the use of the term “Allah” by Christians while both the Prime Minister and the First Lady of Malaysia continued to lend support and give legitimacy to the right-wing Perkasa to fan racist sentiments and encourage violent behaviour.

There is much for the BN to apologise for to all Malaysians, not just prior to 2008, but particularly for the past 3 wasted years.  UMNO’s most unapologetic “apology” just before the upcoming elections will hence not change how the rakyat perceives BN, especially since the BN leaders are not even willing to recognize the faults in the system.

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Parliamentary Questions 2012 (I)

Parliament commences again on 12 March 2012.  It will most certainly be the final session before the next general elections, so it should be pretty exciting and eventful.  The following are the list of 15 oral and written questions I have submitted for the coming session.

Parliamentary Questions for 2012 Session I

Soalan Jawapan Lisan

1.     Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan terma-terma penyelesaian kes mahkamah antara Tajudin Ramli dengan Danaharta/Prokhas. Adakah jumlah hutang Tajudin RM589.15 juta telah dilupuskan dan apakah sebab langkah penyelesaian diambil tanpa bicara.

2. Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan sebab konsesi lebuhraya Pantai Barat
(a) ditawarkan kepada anak syarikat Kumpulan Europlus Bhd tanpa sebarang tender terbuka.
(b) memerlukan kos sebanyak RM7.07 bilion dan pinjaman kerajaan sebanyak RM2.24 bilion

3. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Pertanian menyatakan kedudukan abatoir yang diperlukan dalam projek Pusat Fidlot Negara, berapakah jumlah wang yang diperuntukkan oleh Kementerian Kewangan dan adakah wang tersebut telah digunakan.

4. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Pengangkutan menyatakan
(a) sebab Lapangan Terbang KLIA2 dipindah daripada tapak asal KLIA Utara ke KLIA Barat yang telah dikenali sebagai tapak yang paling tidak sesuai untuk membina lapangan terbang.
(b) kos kerja tanah di tapak KLIA Barat dan pembinaan menara kawalan baru di KLIA2.

5. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Perdagangan Antarabangsa dan Industri menyatakan
(a) jumlah subsidi dan geran R&D kepada Perusahan Otomobil Negara (PROTON) dan industri pembuatan kereta setiap tahun sejak 2000
(b) adakah subsidi dan geran ini akan diteruskan setelah PROTON dijual kepada DRB Hicom.

6. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Kewangan menyatakan
(a) cara gula mentah diperolehi oleh Kerajaan dan pengiraan subsidi gula yang diberikan kepada syarikat penapisan gula
(b) sebab kerajaan membeli gula mentah dengan harga US$0.26 setiap paun walaupun harga pasaran dunia tidak melebihi US$0.24.

7. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi dan Kepenggunaan menyatakan
(a) senarai nilai geran yang telah diberikan kepada Juta Bersih Sdn Bhd bagi setiap Kedai Rakyat 1Malaysia (KR1M) yang dibuka
(b) nilai “revenue” jualan produk berjenama 1Malaysia berbanding dengan produk jenama lain yang dijual dalam KR1M sehingga Februari 2012

8. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Pengangkutan menyatakan kedudukan terperinci projek “Automated Fare Collection” (AFC) yang tidak dapat disiapkan dalam jangka masa yang ditetapkan dan memerlukan pelanjutan masa diberikan beberapa kali dan jumlah wang yang telah dibayar kepada pihak kontraktor.

9. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Pengangkutan menyatakan
(a) kedudukan projek Zon Bebas Pelabuhan Klang (PKFZ) termasuk keluasan yang telah disewa, kadar sewaan kaki persegi dan jumlah sewa yang dikutip
(b) sama ada PKFZ dapat mencapai sewaan dan pendapatan mengikut pelan perniagaan dan pengaliran tunai yang diberi kepada syarikat audit PricewaterhouseCoopers.

10. Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan sebab projek MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang diberikan kontingensi kos tambahan sebanyak 15% yang tidak akan mengenakan sebarang penalty ke atas pihak “Project Delivery Partner” (PDP) yang akan mengurus projek tersebut.


Soalan Bertulis

11. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Kewangan menyatakan senarai terperinci semua pinjaman agensi kerajaan atau syarikat swasta yang diberi jaminan oleh kerajaan yang merupakan "contingent liability" untuk setiap tahun sejak 2001.

12. Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan dengan jadual terperinci (bukan rencana) jumlah pengundi baru yang didaftarkan
(a) Oleh setiap parti politik untuk setiap suku tahun sejak 2008
(b) Oleh setiap parti politik mengikut negeri sejak 2008

13. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Dalam Negeri menyatakan dengan jadual terperinci (bukan rencana), statistik jenayah setiap tahun sejak 2006 bagi
(a) Negeri Selangor mengikut daerah dan jenis jenayah
(b) Seluruh negara mengikut negeri dan jenis jenayah

14. Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan senarai semua petender dan harga yang dibekalkan untuk projek MRT bagi
(a) pakej V5: Pembinaan jejambat dan lain-lain dari Portal Maluri ke Stesyen Plaza Phoenix
(b) Pakej V6: Pembinaan jejambat dan lain-lain dari Plaza Phoenix ke Stesyen Taman Tun Hussein Onn

15. Tony Pua meminta Menteri Luar Negeri menyatakan
(a) sebab perkhidmatan memproses permohonan visa melawat Malaysia di negara Cina diswastakan dan apakah syarat-syarat utama penswastaan termasuk kadar yuran yang perlu dibayar
(b) berapa permohonan yang diproses oleh syarikat tersebut setiap bulan mengikut jenis visa dan kawasan/daerah di Cina

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NFC: Where Did RM81.4 Million Go?

'Directors have taken out RM81.4mil from NFC'
Nigel Aw
11:50AM Mar 2, 2012

Directors of the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) have transferred close to RM81.4 million from the company account to those of external companies as of 2009, DAP national publicity chief Tony Pua said today.

The amount, he said, is held by private companies under the directors without any guarantee  that the sum would be returned to NFC.

"The directors have emphasised that all these companies are either subsidiaries or associated with NFC.

“But the accounts since 2007 showed NFC has no subsidiaries," he said at a press conference at the DAP headquarters in Kuala Lumpur this morning.

The NFC's 2009 audit report states:"Included in other receivables and deposits of the company is an amount of RM81,324,745 (2008: RM32,275,493) due by companies which are associated with certain directors of the company.

"The amounts are unsecured and have no fixed term of repayment."

Pua said: "This means that we don't know if we can get the money back."

Audit reports for 2008 and 2009

Reiterating that lending directly to company directors is against the Companies Act 1965, Pua speculated that the amount may have ballooned to over RM100 million after 2009, the accounts of which  have yet to be published.

The audit reports of 2008 and 2009 listed  the company directors as Women, Family and Community Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s (right) husband Mohamad Salleh Ismail and their three children, namely Wan Shahinur Izran Mohamad Salleh, Wan Izzana Fatimah Zabedah Mohamad Salleh and Wan Shahinur Izmir Mohamad Salleh.

The other five appointed directors were A Manaf Hussin, Mohd Mokhtar Ismail, Mat Ali Hassan, Raj D Ratnakumar and Norzam Md Nor.

However, Ratnakumar and Norzam resigned in 2009 while Alias Mohd Yassim was appointed in May 2010.

“Given that this amount of money was funded by taxpayers, I call upon NFC to immediately disclose every single cent of the RM81.4 million.

“There is a great need for accountability, money from the government cannot be used for anything or hidden away, it must be transparent and taxpayers must be informed,” he said.

If NFC fails to immediately disclose all the private companies that have drawn money from NFC, Pua said, he will push this matter before the Public Accounts Committee which will meet on Mar 5.

“I will make sure NFC is at the top of the agenda... I will demand a list of other receivables from who and to where,” he said.

According to its audit report from LM Chan & Associates, NFC had in 2007 suffered a loss of RM1.94 million, followed by RM7.04 million and RM10.94 million in 2008 and 2009, respectively.

For 2008 and 2009, NFC’s revenue cost exceeded its gross revenue, thus suffering a loss even before other operating costs and expenses were deducted.

As of 2009, it had piled up a total loss of RM19.93 million.

The audit reports also showed that the directors had forked out a total of RM1.11 million for the National Feedlot Project, however, the remaining was from the RM250 million government soft loan granted to NFC.

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DAP Petaling Jaya Fund-Raising Dinner 2012

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NFC Puts Shopping Cart Before The Cow

In a statement today, NFCorp Chairman, Datuk Seri Muhammad Salleh “explained that the publicly-funded cattle-rearing firm was building up the market in Singapore” to justify the setting up of a Farmhouse Supermarket in Singapore soon.

PKR Strategic Director Rafizi Ramli had first exposed the fact that NFCorp may be using public funds to expand into the supermarket business in Singapore which are owned directly by the directors of NFCorp and not by NFCorp itself.

Rafizi has today responded by questioning NFCorp on the basis of expansion overseas when it was the objective of the NFCorp to fulfill 40% of the local beef demand.  At the moment NFCorp is barely scratching 1% of the local market demands, hence any investments for overseas exports is not only premature, but also contrary of the objectives set out in the government’s RM250 million loan agreement to the company.

I would further add the fact that opening a “supermarket” is a completely different business from that of “exporting” beef, even if such exports were indeed justified.  Sale of beef and beef products in such a supermarket would only  contribute a miniscule percentage of overall product sales and will do very little towards increasing the demand for beef from Malaysia in Singapore.

If promoting beef from NFCorp is indeed the overriding objective in setting up the Farmhouse Supermarket, then Datuk Seri Muhammed Salleh either completely lacks business sense or is lying through his teeth to justify the use of public funds.

What is perhaps most damning, is that a check with the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) of Singapore has shown that there is no approval to import raw beef from Malaysia.  At this point of time, only “processed beef” such as sausages, patties, meatballs, smoked meat etc., are approved for selected companies.  Even so, only 5 companies are approved and they are Mac Food Sdn Bhd, Nestle Manufacturing Sdn Bhd, PAP Cashnet Sdn Bhd, Unilever Bestfoods Sdn Bhd and Lucky Food Processing Sdn Bhd.

NFCorp has not  been given any approval to export its beef or processed meat to Singapore.  Hence how can Muhammed Salleh claim that the setting up of Farmhouse Supermarket, which is already about to open for business, be in the interest of promoting NFCorp’s “Gemas Gold”?  Is this not a clear case of putting the cart before the cows?

Most importantly, the allegation that part of the RM250 million loan to NFCorp was utilized to set up Farmhouse Supermarket, which is directly owned by the family of Minister of Women and Family Development, Datuk Sharizat Abd Jalil has yet been answered by NFCorp.  Such diversion of funds from the NFCorp is clearly in breach of the Loan Agreement and the Companies Act 1965.

Datuk Seri Muhammed Salleh should not be distracted from the core issue of criminal breach of trust and must be held accountable to the tax-payers who are funding the operations of NFCorp.

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Attorney-General Objected to West Coast Expressway Contract?

The Malay Mail cover an exclusive story on the fact that the Attorney-General “is of the opinion the terms of agreement for the project, which has seen its cost balloon, are not in the public interest” on Monday, 27 February 2012.

According to the report, “Government sources tell The Malay Mail Abdul Gani had expressed reservations over the terms, which seem to heavily favour the highway concessionaire, WCE Sdn Bhd, a 64.2 per cent subsidiary of Kumpulan Europlus Bhd… Abdul Gani has put the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and the relevant agencies and ministries such as the Malaysian Highway Authority, the Finance Ministry and the Works Ministry on notice over his reservations on the 316km-long highway that will link Banting in Selangor to Taiping, Perak, where 224km will be tolled.”

Allegedly, according to their source, ‘despite immense pressure to sign the legal documents, the A-G has informed the stakeholders he wants to review the terms of the agreement.”

Assuming that the Malay Mail front-page report is spot on, then the Prime Minister must immediately answer as to why the Government is insistent on awarding the new WCE concession to Kumpulan Europlus via direct negotiation which has seen the cost of the project inflate excessively.

The cost of the expressway was RM3.0 billion when it was first awarded without tender in 2007 but further “negotiations” between the Government and the concessionaire has increased the cost to RM7.1 billion when it was re-awarded last month.  In addition, the concession period has been increased from 33 years originally to 60 years, a record for highway privatisation projects in Malaysia.

What is perhaps unacceptable is the fact that despite such attractive terms, the Government still have to provide RM2.24 billion of soft loans to the concessionaire, as well as up to 3% interest-subsidy for commercial loans secured.  The Government will also bear the cost of all land-acquisition, estimated at RM1 billion.

If the Malay Mail report is indeed true, then we call upon the A-G to do all necessary within his powers to ensure that the Government receives a fair bargain, and to avoid a repeat of many costly mistakes made by the Government in privatisation projects such as the RM12.5 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal, toll highways which generates astronomical profits for the concessionaires such as the RM5.9 billion PLUS and the RM1.3 billion LDP.

What is shocking is the fact that the project is being awarded to a company with very poor financial record over the past few years.  Kumpulan Europlus earned revenues of RM50 million and RM28 million in the last 2 financial years of 2010 and 2011 respective.  Besides the small revenue base compared with the RM7.1 billion project, the company also made losses of RM35 million and RM46 million in the past 2 years.

Dato’ Seri Najib Razak must walk the talk of “economic transformation” by implementing all the reforms on transparency and accountability that his administration has been preaching over the past 3 years.  He must not “over-rule” the opinions of the A-G to ensure that the people’s interest comes first and the tax-payers’ are not excessively burdened.  Instead, the Prime Minister must disclose in full the basis of the award of WCE to Kumpulan Europlus, as well as the financial justifications for the soft-loan, interest-subsidy, 4.1 billion increase in the cost of the highway as well as the 27-year extension of the concession.  Most importantly, the Government, in the interest of transparency, must disclose the proposed toll rates which will be imposed on motorists to justify such lucrative terms to the concessionaire.

Otherwise, all the talk of “economic transformation” which Najib has been “selling” to both local and foreign investors will be seen as just political rhetoric, and the Prime Minister will soon be branded by businessmen all over the world as the one who just could not deliver the promised changes.

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