The merger of ECM-Libra and Avenue Capital. The PAC probe continues...
Shahrir Samad says his Public Audit Committee has asked the PM, who is also Finance Minister, to send the 2nd Finance Minister, Nor Mohamed Yakcop, to avail himself for a PAC hearing on the controversial merger involving a small company co-founded by the minister's good friend, Kalimullah Hassan.
According to this report by Utusan Malaysia, the PAC wants to grill the "Top Cat" on two issues: how the government (the MoF) reached the decision to invest in Avenue Capital and how it ran its operations.
Read this posting made back in July for a backgrounder on the merger, the controversy and PAC investigation.
Hey, still await malaysia's Schindler's list (remember Lebanon?). We r becoming a nation of Hot Air!
ReplyDeleteThe Finance Minister has said clearly 'Saya tak tahu' when he was asked about the merger of ECM Libra and Avenue Capital. Two issues here.
ReplyDeleteThe 2nd Finance Minister has no power to sign off on anything. Therefore the Finance Minister must have signed off on the merger. This calls to question his 'Saya tak tahu'.
The PAC must ask and make public the actual memo, document, project paper or whatever other instrument of record which has the approving authority's signature approving the merger.
If the signature is that of the Finance Minister, then it is he who must be called to the PAC.
Secondly, if neither the FM1 or the FM2 signed off on the deal but instead it was merely a KSU or (God forbid) a Ketua Pengarah then the PAC must call the relevant KSU or KP and ask them what was the instrument of authorisation which gave them the authority to approve the deal.
Something is smelly here.
The PAC is also diverting attention away from something that is even more serious. This is the original sale of BBMB Securities by Khazanah Nasional Bhd to Kalimullah way back in 2003.
Khazanah Nasional was forced to agree to a below market price offered by Kalimullah. In exploring the ECM - Avenue Cap deal, the PAC must also dig deeper into the original ECM purchase of BBMB Securities.
FYI the sale of BBMB Securities by Khazanah to Kalimullah's ECM was signed off on 30th October 2003 ie just one day before Dr M's retirement on 31 October 2004. This was camouglage to make it look as though the sale of BBMB Securities was done during the time of Dr M.
By flip flopping about the ECM - Avenue Cap merger, the PAC may divert attention away from the sale of BBMB Sec. to Kalimullah's ECM Libra.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to predict the findings of PAC.. "Everything was done above board and in accodance to proper procedures". Forget that the timing of SIL acquisition of ECM Libra's shares stinks. Forget about his 'borrowing' to finance the purchase. In any other place that would be deemed as Insiders Trading. PAC finding is required to legitimise the corruption. There's still plenty of time before the next GE, and Melayu mudah lupa. So what's new?
ReplyDeletePAC investigating the deal is just a window dressing to please the rakyat and opposition. That PAC is doing something.
ReplyDeleteI agree with sawomatang with the outcome of the investigation.
Semua transaksi adalah mengikut lunas undang-undang.
So, whats new in Malaysia?
Ayub Tulakang
Either the 1st Finance Minister was lying or was failling in his duty.
ReplyDeleteHe must and should know when a deal as large as this one involving government assets took place.
Even the Cabinet must be informed. If it wasn't, some one powerful must have kept it away from the Cabinet.
Either way it's bad for the country. A person who is ignorant is as bad as a person who lied. If he is both, we are dead ducks.
When Shahrir Samad said that the transaction was above board, he was right. It was above board, undertaken according to procedures. That had never been an issue. The issue is whether it should have taken place in the first place considering the players involved who happen to be close to the corridors of powers. It is an ethical moral issue.
ReplyDeleteMr Rocky,
ReplyDeleteAs the Abdullah Administration and its media are in the habit of digging up past excesses, I strongly urge them to dig up the RM15 billion losses suffered by Bank Negara.
We need to get to the bottom of this scandal while the main player, Top Cat aka Tan Sri Nor Mohamad Yakcop, is around to defend himself.
I am sure many Bank Negara officials would want to testify.
Thank You.