Saturday, January 03, 2009

"Midnight regulations"

update, 2am 4/1/2009: Support from an MP. YB Wee's weekly question this time is: Should Sime Darby be allowed to ...
Do let him know what you think, here.


original posting:
Have a Heart. If you are interested in saving IJN from Sime Darby, please place this heart on your blog. Thank you. _ Rocky's Bru

update: mummy rokiah's versio, here, bears a different stroke. So does Shamsul's logo, here.



EPU calls for meeting. Despite public uproar and stakeholders' objection, the outgoing Abdullah Administration seems bent on forcing through a proposal by a desperate Sime Darby to take over IJN, the National Heart Institute set up in 1992.

Just a week after the Cabinet announced that it was deferring a decision on the matter, the Economic Planning Unit in the PM's Department has called for a meeting between Sime Darby and IJN. The meeting is scheduled for 2.30 pm on Monday.

The media have not been formally informed of the meeting but anti-takeover blogs are saying that it's an attempt to push the deal through before March when Abdullah is due to hand over the premiership to Najib Razak.

Pak Lah's "midnight regulations".
I was looking for a term to describe a takeover attempt done in such haste and in the middle of a leadership change, too. Someone suggested that I look up under "midnight regulations".
[In the context of American politics, midnight regulations are the executive branch agency regulations passed in the lame duck period of an outgoing President's administration. More from Wiki, h e r e].
Outgoing President Bush, for example, is trying to push 90 midnight regulations to ensure his legacy, according to one source.

Abdullah is already rushing several legislation, including the Judicial Apppointments Commission, in Parliament to secure his legacy. The IJN takeover can be seen in the same vein. The RM1.7 billion LCCT airport in Labu was never part of the country's airport masterplan but was approved by the Cabinet for Air Asia and, yes, Sime Darby to develop. Watch closely now, there'll be more midnight approvals and midnight projects before someone calls it a day.

I am encouraged to know that there are more bloggers now out to try and stop these midnight nonsense. They include
Sime Darby Watch
Sakmongkol
Apanama
A Voice
AM Ubaidah and
Dr M.
The other blogging doctor, Doctor 2008, even calls the takeover attempt "The Healthcare Blooper of the Year - Malaysian Edition" and tells us what exactly is wrong with the deal [click h e r e]. The cartoon below is taken from the good doc's blog.

53 comments:

  1. I understand the government is providing free treatments to government staffs..by .the government paying the bills...so that poor government staffs get free treatments?
    So in actual fact...all surgery cases are not free at all.
    Government pays...from whose money?....tax payers...correct?
    Why free for government servants...and not to all Malaysians?
    Perhaps Dollah sees it as a downright double standard of UMNO...cannot correct it..might as well sell to commercial firm..who is powerful with a proven record...to be fair to all.
    This is a serious life saving institution...and no decent Malaysians will support anything..just to benefit one race.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous8:46 pm

    i think the PM is trying to 'kill' Malaysians whom he consider as the main culprit in pulling him down as PM from the result of the March 8 GE. this is how PM Pak Lah is punishing the voters/Malaysians in general- this coming from someone who introduced Islam Hadhari .. !! ... nobody can save us Malaysians now - not even Anwar !! we're all as good as DEAD- come March 09 Pak Lah will be in Perth enjoying his retirement where the medical facilities is one of the best in the world.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Rocky,

    Its time to organise a demo by any means i,e 'IJN BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE STOP THE TAKE OVER'. We can do like mimicking the 'Bersih Rally' and sent a memorandum to the agong or we can all hold hands and walk like what the chocolate bar council did for 'walk for justice', we can cycle like what the 'JERIT' does, we can gather at the Parlimen loby like what Jerit does and sent a memorandum, we can mimic PR stlye who loves to demo their grievences but what we are doing is different from what the rest are doing. We are saving IJN for the people of Malaysia and not like the rest who are doing for their own agenda especially 'party agenda'!. Nevetherless we must never never mimic Hindraft action.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous9:20 pm

    I pray to God that this "privatisation" bull never materializes though I believe that it would be in vain eventually. The thing about Malaysia gomen nowadays is that they could pretty much do what they like, with minimal regards to what the taxpayers think.

    Musa Hitam Must Die

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous9:23 pm

    .IJN was the brainchild of Tun Mahathir when he was the Prime Minister then. Out of humility and fullest confident with our local cardiac surgeons and specialists he rejected the offer of being treated at the best Heart Centres abroad. Instead he preferred to have his open heart surgery at the KL General Hospital. After his successful heart operation he transferred all the best cardiologists and heart specialist from KLGH to the newly established Heart Centre - Institute Jantung Negara.Its become a GLC which not only provided world class treatment and facilities to the well-to-do patients, but also gave treatment to the low income groups and the poor for free or discounted rate. I don't agree with the taking-over of IJN by Sime Darby or any other private corporations which doesn't care for the welfare of the poor.

    rajaborneo
    london/miri/casablanca

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous9:57 pm

    Mr LIM who I think is a lawyer commented on my blog GEORGECHOOALLOUTFORMALAYSIA.BLOGSPOT.COM that I do not have a "LOCUS STANDI" if I want to go to court to stop the takeover.I am no lawyer and I hope they are other ways to stop this deal.As we all know the govt of MALAYSIA is on the verge of BANKRUPT due to corruption by UMNO anbd BN.Hence they have to "PIRATISE " IJN and sell the govt quarters land at Cochrane Road to raise funds.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous10:09 pm

    Bro, let's not forget that Dr M also rushed through a lot of things in the last month of his tenure.

    Jangan jadi Melayu yang mudah lupa, bro.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous10:18 pm

    didnt Dr M did the same midnight stuff.
    how many contracts were dished out just before he left? double tracking, jackpot machines licence in Pahang hills, etc...

    Hey I am not condoning such midnight deals. Yes, I am with you on the opposition to the IJN deal.


    Bangsa Malaysia

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous10:40 pm

    HANDS OFF IJN

    Doesn't the govt know that this is a very unpopular move? Doesn't the govt know that on this issue, the rakyat, be they supporters of bn or pr, are dead set against this.
    And why is sime darby soo desperate to take over IJN?

    Please doctors and staff at IJN, please show you too do not like this move. Have a heart.
    I Joe Public

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  10. Anonymous10:57 pm

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Good evening rocky's bru,

    I am very glad that there are bloggers like you around. Daring, outspoken and trying your best to ensure fairplay on both side of the divide.

    I hope more right-minded Malaysians will join in to stand up for what is wrong and speak up against what's wrong. In this case, the takeover of IJN by Sime Darby.

    The government of the day especially our PM seems to have lost his heart some where along the way. What sort of legacy he is thinking of leaving behind? In the history of the future, he will be remembered as the heartless PM if the deal is clinged.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous11:12 pm

    just shows that politicians are the same everywhere....it is happening now in the US, it happened as Mahathir was about to leave and it will happen again.

    There is nothing that 'Mat in the street' can do about this.

    "MAT"

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous11:40 pm

    subsidy mentality never ending for Malaysian again ?. about time we start paying for medical services and only those that requires assistence be helped by the authority. Medical insurance available for most of us, so why not secure it before its too late ?. nothing is free in life, you have to earn it.
    if you don't agree with me, pls don't be childish about it.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous11:54 pm

    Aku tak sangka langsung MUSA HITAM akhirnya jadi macam ni.

    Sedey

    ReplyDelete
  15. INVITE TO MY BLOG :
    'IJN ADALAH JANTUNG RAKYAT"
    www.mummyrokiah.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous12:04 am

    gov especially Musa Hitam ( Musang Ereng) must think the rakyat need than the others. I don't think gov is going to go bankrupt and will be saved by selling IJN. Some one greedy to make fast money through commission may be .

    saveijn

    ReplyDelete
  17. PLEASE ADD TO YOUR BLOG ALSO :
    "JANGAN UNDI BN DALAM PILIHANRAYA KECIL KUALA TERENGGANU KALAU KERAJAAN TIDAK BATALKAN PENGSWASTAAN IJN"

    ReplyDelete
  18. JANGAN UNDI BN DALAM PILIHANRAYA KECIL KUALA TERANGGANU KALAU KERAJAAN TIDAK BATALKAN CADANGAN PENGSWASTAAN IJN.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Bro, Dato' Najib's body language when he spoke publicly about the IJN privatisation showed clearly that he is hesitant about the matter.

    Dato' Najib must know by now the feelings of all Malaysians about this proposed IJN privatisation. As Minister of Finance, President Elect of UMNO and PM in Waiting he now has a HUGE Duty of Care to instruct termination of this slimy proposal once and for all as it is a hugely unpopular proposal by the BN Government, if carried thru, will unite the people to vote for Pakatan Rakyat. Its like handing the Pakatan Rakyat a huge handicap before the next general election.

    Najib must now consider whether the interest of a few political and corporate scumbags out to make a few millions for themselves is worth sacrificing the UMNO/BN Government of more than 50 years.

    The ball is now firmly on Najib's court, his action/decision will decide the fate of UMNO/BN for years to come. Please do not allow Pak Lah to make this "midnight regulations" to the further detriment of the BN Government which is under siege by so many negative perceptions already. let me tell Dato' Najib straight, if IJN is privatised to Sime Darby the perception is that BN DO NOT CARE ABOUT THE RAKYAT WELFARE AND INTEREST INSTEAD PANDER ONLY TO THE INTEREST OF THE GREEDY FEW.

    ReplyDelete
  20. KUALA TERENGGANU, NO VOTE FOR BN, DROP THE PROPOSAL TO PRIVATISE IJN.

    ReplyDelete
  21. ISRAEL ATTACK GAZA. SIME DARBY ATTACK IJN.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous12:31 am

    we truly have a heartless govt.
    or is the issue revived just so Barisan lose KT and erm, Najib gets the blame?
    who is behind the deal?
    khir toyo mention a consultant, like in many govt deals.
    who is this consultant?

    ReplyDelete
  23. EPU is not there for the rakyat. Just look at the toll agreements. Compare the EPU here to Spore EPU. who gets the best deal for the people and tax payers money.

    This cabinet is not for the people either. They have self interest above all. How can they do this...forget the bumiputra cries...this is all UMNOPutras. They never do the right thing for the country or the people. Sad!!!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous1:18 am

    Just make sure that in the next General Election, UMNO is definately history ... Wali Kota

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous2:40 am

    cukup-lah mummy rokiah. mentang-mentang rocky dah link hang. tak payah nak banyak membebel.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Rocky

    I have left a message to encourage YBro Wee to charge ahead to oppose the IJN privatisation. There's no way that Sime can guarantee that IJN will continue to meet its social obligations. They will put profits before poor people every time. That's just the way business entities work.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous7:01 am

    Musa Hitam. Hati pun hitam. Sekarang jadi Musang Hitam.
    ALL BLOGGERS KENA BANGUN!!!!!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous7:02 am

    hello, let's spread the message that if the IJN privatisation project is not shelfed for good within the next 2 days, bloggers will unite to urge all not to vote BN in KT.

    Ross

    ReplyDelete
  29. Sdr Rocky's Bru,

    You're a business reporter like me for a very long time. I started covering the old Kuala Lumpur-Singapore Stock Exchange in 1972.

    It was then located at Bangkok Bank Building.

    You should know the corporate play and market-making. Consider the following:

    1. The forced merger of Sime Darby (SD), Golden Hope and Guthrie had turned out to be a bad call;

    2. PNB, a Bumiputera Trust Agency, is the real loser in this mega market-making exercise;

    3. Synergy Drive/CIMB made a lot of money by way of fees, commissions and capital gain s;

    4. CIMB is synonymous with Mohd Najib's younger brother;

    5. Other market intermediaries and speculators also made money from the merger;

    6. Now the new Sime Darby is over-dependent on palm oil which has fallen in prices. At the height, palm oil accounted for 70 per cent of its revenue;

    7. It stands to make a loss on palm oil operations if prices fall further;

    8. It share price has also taken a beating, falling from above RM13 last August to just over RM5 now;

    9. To cover up the mistakes and to rescue Sime Darby's short term financials, a programme of bailout/rescue has to be carried out -- hence the low-cost terminal contract and the proposed takeover of the NHI. There could be more;

    10. You need to understand who were behind the Sime Darby, Golden Hope and Guthrie merger;

    11. It was proposed to Dr Mahathir but was rejected because Dr M did not want PNB's assets disturbed;

    12. Who made tonnes of money and was made a Datuk and Tan Sri in rapid succession;

    13. Mohd Najib may see his career comes to an abrupt halt if he is not careful with his handling of the IJN affair;

    14. The best is for him, being the Finance Minister, to put a permanent stop to any bid to privatise the IJN;

    15. Let the Sime Darby merger be a good lesson to all. That putting all the eggs in one basket in the name of economies of scale and efficiency can be fatal mistake;

    16. And keep a close watch on the PLAY at Petronas and other keys GLCs from now to March. You understand why!

    Thank you.

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  30. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  31. Najib have to exert his defacto PM role.. he knew the Rakyat feeling againt it, this is one bad public opinion exercise
    PakLah still misled by his pool of advisor ,Rakyat do not have good feeling factor toward him anymore since PRU 12, elegant silence did not do wonder anymore.....
    Seem like reorganisation of Sime Darby created a monster ( not monsterball..)

    ReplyDelete
  32. So....vote UMNO out because possible..no more free medical service... for govt...muslims?
    Vote them in..if plenty of stolen duit for everyone to spend?
    Serve UMNO right...pampering their members...and behaving like a human...yet next moment..like a devil.
    Dollah is out to wipe out all Mahathir's image..that's for sure.
    If he has a chance to destroy the Twin Towers..without anyone getting hurt..he may just do that.
    One comes after Dollah....is like a Superstar ACTOR....with no brains.
    Enjoy 2009.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous11:20 am

    who are the real culprits behind this deal? and why?

    if sime darby really wants to spend to buy, why not set up a new hospital similar to IJN? then we the rakyat can have 2 options!

    its fishy... and it is starting to stink badly. Let us all be objective about it.

    malaysian cowboy

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous11:28 am

    You guys still don't get it. By itself, IJN does nothing for Sime Darby. It is an institution of national service, so profit can never be the main consideration.

    This has something to do with the critical mass that CIMB is proposing to Khazanah about putting Subang Medical and the Parkway fiasco under one roof.

    What is Najib going to do ? Overrule his brother, the CEO of CIMB ?

    Godfather

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous1:12 pm

    IJN issue, resouces are wasted because the of poor government. It doesn't look good to have IJN privatised but this is because the country is poor. In an advance country this would be best privatised but in Malaysia either way is doomed. Without the best people running the show you have all the limitation.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Exactly that.

    This kind of arrangements were also made when Mahathir stepped down. I don't see any difference between those two; just a question of who benefits at the people's expense.

    So were those deals evil then? Or are they bad only when Pak Lah indulges in it? I guess it depends on whom you ask; the pro Pak Lah people or the Pro Tun people. The common thread that runs through both men and their camps is basically the theme of screwing the rakyat. We can just watch as the machinations take place in secret and if necessary funded by rakyat's money too.

    When IJN is to be privatised, all sorts of noise goes up - ou course, I do not agree with the proposal. But over the years, similar proposals that have burnt a hole in the rakyat's pockets coming from Tun's administration seem to have escaped some people's attention; these range from MAS to the IPPs and tolled highways.

    You don't need a time frame to put together dubious deals; Mahathir did those during his long years in office. And he indulged in the same as he was leaving office; specifically the crooked bridge and the Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary double tracking project are two that I recall (I stand corrected).

    SSDD.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Hope these people can stop thinking of $$$ and take care of the citizens better. Things like this probably caused the swing in votes in last year's election, sigh~

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous4:17 pm

    Bro,
    not only IJN but no other entity should be privatised from now on!

    In fact, we should reverse-privatise those that have been done before without thinking. Like our roads and highways, Telekom, TNB, Syabas, etc.

    Why should taxpayers facilities go into the hands of private individuals? Who profits, and who contribute to the profits?

    Don't let the rakyat be taken in when BN and Sime Darby speak with fork tongues.

    Yah, money will grow on trees, if we believe a privatised IJN or any other body will provide cheap and affordable service to the rakyat.

    Look at how the highway operators, Telekom, TNB etc are ripping the rakyat off. The poor are financing the rich! What utter rubbish!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Huddud may be the answer for all the wrong doing ask Hussam and kit siang
    To mut/ssdd some correction the double track project was awarded to dato Lin of Gamuda for northern line and to YTL from sentul to batu cave

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous6:24 pm

    the answer to everything with musa hitam started with his son. Carlos Musa. Remember how he passed off in the tragic highland tower incident many years ago?

    i wonder whether has taught him a lesson or perhaps he thinks that its fated.

    normally, from what i believe, when someone does something wrong, he would not be punished on the spot but someone else that he/she loves dearly would soon lose.

    that's my understanding of life.

    Allahuakhbar!!!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous6:40 pm

    ok. i have read all post in here. agree with most.

    now, where do we stand as citizens when even a government could not govern a medical body properly.

    how much does an angiogram or angioplasty cost? how much would the minimum fees for heart bypass be?

    from what i have heard, a close friend of mine told me that his father had undergone a bypass operation with ijn. he was charged the sum of RM100K in total.

    now that the charges are rather similiar to the private hospitals, perhaps less and i am not so sure.

    and why are government servants given special treatment? now that i work in the private sector. and my heart gives me problems. would that mean that just because i am not a government servant that i would not get a free heart operation at the end? why should i be paying for other people's heart operation? tax payers money wrongly utilised?

    what happens to the poor people around? tell me. government should give us proper check and balance as well as specific reasons as to why sime darby is going to have a hand in IJN. this is not really right at all. something must have gone wrong somewhere.

    we are talking about lives here. we are not talking about drama episodes or perhaps a darn right big time commercial firm being bought over by some hunky dory at the daylight and by side of the government. what is immensely wrongful here is the dignity that has brought about shams by 2 parties, suffice to say, greedy parties. i am afraid that this is no longer the gist of the issue but perturbedly an issue involving the national heart center.

    the damage done is rather grave, so much so that the importance of livelihoods of mankind is disrupted and destroyed by certain public figures and individuals filling up their private pockets qua coffers.

    would it be fair to everyone that IJN is sold to SDB?

    given a chance to be a prime minister if i m permitted, i think the first thing that i would do is to tell zubir and his cohorts to fly their kites.

    IJN is the heart of the nation, the centre piece of surgery, the nucleus of the nation moving and thriving towards excellence of its medical field.

    selling it off or privatising it would mean selling off the country's only heart institute and that by no means of poor people stepping into the place but would only give rise to the rich and well to do society. i may be wrong in this context but i my conscience says so.

    period!!!

    ReplyDelete
  42. Anonymous6:45 pm

    sime darby-funders-CIMB Equities

    culprits-let me see whom. Nazir Razak? Since he is behind CIMB and his group of cohorts

    what say you?

    ReplyDelete
  43. Anonymous8:10 pm

    Say "TAK NAK" to IJN privatisation...Say "TAK NAK" to Sime Darby....Say "TAK NAK" to Musa HItam....Say "TAK NAK" to KJ and his cronies...

    If Sime Darby can fund the Labu LCCT with Tony...then Sime Darby shlould open their own Hospital..why ROB the Rakyat???

    Have you no shame Sime Darby?? Have you no shame KJ?
    Have you no shame Dollah??
    Have you no shame BN??

    Reject BN in KT to protest..
    Reject BN in any other by election to protest..
    Reject BN at the next General Election...

    Najib, if you any balls left in you..you will step in and say
    TAK NAK!!! TAK NAK!!! TAK NAK!!!

    WASP05

    ReplyDelete
  44. Count me in!

    http://semalu.blogspot.com/2008/12/jangan-usik-ijn.html

    ReplyDelete
  45. Anonymous11:50 pm

    Saudara Rocky Bru,

    Salam, saya rasa tak payah la kita ber 'demo'.

    Sempena bulan Muharam yang mulia ini, saya terpanggil untuk mencadangkan agar kita mengadakan majlis solat hajat beramai-ramai memohon kepada yang MAHA ESA untuk membatalkan niat pihak-pihak tertentu yang ingin menjayakan PENSWASTAAN IJN.

    Saya juga memohon jasa baik SDW untuk mengutarakan cadangan tersebut di atas.

    Jantung Mu Jantung Ku

    ReplyDelete
  46. Anon 6:24pm,

    Linking what Musa Hitam does now or what he might have done before to arwah Carlos is not on.

    Whenever I think of Musa Hitam's loss in the Highland Towers tragedy, my heart still goes to the man. Many others perished in that tragedy. I don't know any of them personally but I know some who lost their loved ones there. May God bless their souls.

    Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Anonymous7:34 am

    IJN under Public healthcare, NEP to continue, free school books..... wow! very popular. All this are elements of communist state or a 3rd world. A country that cannot mature and grow up.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Anonymous9:03 am

    http://hmatter.blogspot.com/2008/12/letter-to-sun-daily-on-ijn-issue.html

    here's a cardiologist take on this issue. a worthy read.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Rocky,
    Baguih la hang...bubuh kaum kerabat hang saja sini.
    CRONY juga juga ka...???

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous10:52 am

    Mummy Rokiah,

    You ni kaum kerabat Rocky, ke?

    Sedar lah sikit tu.

    Persan tak, bertambah hits to your blog selepas Rocky linked you?

    Oleh itu, jangan lah nak "membebel" dan nak sindir-sindir brother kita...Minah ooi!

    Bengap betui!

    ReplyDelete
  51. Anonymous2:19 pm

    Dear Rocky,

    IJN bid by Sime Darby seem come to an end. Current development by them is to built a new LCCT in Labu also does not make sense. They only see money without thinking the whole scene.

    Where does the EPU and people in Sime learn basic mathematics such as calculating budget taxi fare for the user's? With the current fare of RM 92.40 one way to Kuala Lumpur, does this price will remain the same? At the end, rakyat will suffer from this deal. Believe and admit it.

    Does they think that going to LCCT currently is too far? The main transportation is either personal vehicle, buses and budget taxis. But i believe that MAHB has got plan for expansion for current LCCT & KLIA to received more passengers as it can accomodate up to 125 million passengers is far to be reached.

    Another way to stop this is to pursuit Dato' Tony Fernandes to give his middle finger to this people behind (Labu LCCT). Please do something, help us..

    p/s: Pls correct my grammar as i learn from humble malay school.

    ReplyDelete
  52. To ChengHo

    >>To mut/ssdd some correction the double track project was awarded to dato Lin of Gamuda for northern line and to YTL from sentul to batu cave<<

    This was given to a Gamuda-MMC consortium with obvious Syed Mokhtar links.

    And yes, I checked, this was a typical midnight regulation type of deal.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Anonymous1:44 pm

    Noksokmo said...

    Ini pun macam midnight regulations, kalau pakai scrip yg sama, lagi umph!!!

    Sub: Selangor Pahang water inter state water project.


    Nishimatsu 'planned Thai contract bribes'

    Busines Desk
    The Daily Yomiuri
    Publication Date: 16-01-2009

    Japan's Nishimatsu Construction Co planned to offer about 350 million yen (US$3.8 million) in bribes with its joint venture partner in Thailand to then Thai government senior officials to win a 2003 tunnel construction project, sources said Thursday (January 15).

    Nishimatsu, a Tokyo-based second-tier general contractor, and its Thai partner reportedly prepared a total of 480 million yen ($5.3 million) for bribery maneouvering, with Nishimatsu contributing about half the amount.

    The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office on Wednesday (January 14) arrested a former vice president of Nishimatsu Construction, Keiji Fujimaki, 68, on suspicion of smuggling 70 million yen into Japan from abroad.


    The public prosecutors special investigation squad asked Thai prosecutors to cooperate in investigating the case as a violation of the Unfair Competition Prevention Law, as Nishimatsu and its Thai partner are suspected to have committed bribery, the sources said.

    The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration in the Thai capital commissioned the public works project to construct a 3.5km tunnel to let water out of a canal in central Bangkok as a flood-prevention measure.

    Nishimatsu and its local joint venture partner won the flood prevention tunnel construction project contract for about 7 billion yen ($77.5 million) in July 2003.

    Nishimatsu held talks with its Thai partner and planned to offer bribes to BMA and Thai government officials to win the contract, the sources said.

    Each company reportedly contributed about 240 million yen ($2.6 million) to the bribery fund.

    Nishimatsu and its Thai partner also reportedly decided how to apportion the 350 million yen ($3.8 million) in bribes among several senior Thai officials, and to give the remaining 130 million yen ($1.4 million) to local bodies responsible for monitoring bribery activities.

    Kazuhiko Takahara, 63, a former deputy manager of Nishimatsu's overseas operation department, was rearrested Wednesday on suspicion of violating the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law.

    More than 400 million yen ($4.4 million) was used to win the contract for the Bangkok construction project, the public prosecutors special investigation squad quoted Takahara as saying.

    Fujimaki admitted to the allegation that he instructed Takahara to bring 70 million yen illegally into Japan, sources said.

    Fujimaki is believed to have ordered his subordinate, Takahara, to bring the money without declaring it to customs authorities on five different occasions to Japan from Hong Kong and other locations from February 2006 to August 2007.

    ReplyDelete