PKR director of strategy Rafizi Ramli today threatened to "throw files" at MCA deputy minister Chua Tee Yong on the BN party's links to Talam Corporation if he continued attacking the Selangor governmentThe Selangor state assembly has been abuzz with a revelation that Agriculture and Agro-based minister Noh Omar had been involved in pet prawn project at his Tanjong Karang parliamentary constituency.
The revelation was made by Sekinchan state assemblyman Ng Suee Lim who claimed Noh bought 30 acres of land at a heavily discounted price in 1995, the year he won the Tanjong Karang seat.
Last year, Noh inked a deal to rent the land to Pristine Agrofood Sdn Bhd for its prawn farming project in 2011 for 10 years.
“Noh's involvement raises the issue of conflict of interest as he is also the minister responsible for the industry,” Ng said.
The land, originally categorised as a commercial plot, had been converted to agriculture land in 2011.
“The people are having hard time getting lands but a key leader is given land easily. I visited the place and now it has been converted for prawn farming,” Ng added.
Ng furnished a document to back his claim: an agreement between Pristine and Noh.
“I am treating it as a land scandal, as there is proof of conflict of interest," said Ng.
Pristine Agrofood Sdn Bhd director Chu Bak Teck had responded by saying that Noh was merely the landlord and had nothing to do with the business.
"I don't understand why (Ng) would say such things in the state assembly. I am shocked. Why did he do that? This is madness," news portal Malaysiakini quoted him as saying.
Meanwhile, the Selangor state assembly has passed a new regulation barring any state representatives and local council members to apply for state-owned lands.
Tan Sri Muhammad bin Haji Muhammad Taib said he had confidence beating his opponent Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in the UMNO deputy presidential race.He said since he first contested in the UMNO vice presidential race in 1993, he has had his own supporters. This, coupled with the votes supposed to go to Mohd Ali Rustam, would see his support rate soar past 50%."I contested in the vice presidential elections in 1993, 1996, 1999 and 2004, and have accumulated some fundamental support votes. I contested alongside Muhyiddin for vice president in 1996, and he lost."He said Najib garnered the highest number of votes in that election, with now prime minister Datuk Seri Abdullah second, and Muhammad Taib at third position.In the 1993 election, Muhyiddin was first, Najib second and Muhammad Taib third. In 1999, Najib was first, followed by Taib and Muhyiddin.Muhammad Taib, who is also the rural and regional development minister, said during an exclusive interview withSin Chew Daily that with only he and Muhyiddin now in the race, party delegates had to select either him or Muhyiddin, and there wouldn't be a third candidate to dilute the votes.He felt his support level should be higher than that of Muhyiddin Yassin, based on party election records. And with the votes for Mohd Ali Rustam now going to him, his chances of getting elected are considerably boosted.He said once elected, he would work closely with PM-in-waiting Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and become his most trusted assistant in tackling the current economic crisis.
He said he had already started working with Najib since 1982. During the Mahathir era, Muhammad Taib, Najib and Muhyiddin were all in the so-called "Wawasan Team.""I can work with anyone in any area. I can work with Dr Mahathir, Abdullah and Najib."During my 11-year tenure as Selangor menteri besar, I had good working relations with anyone, including Wanita UMNO chairperson Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, former Melaka menteri besar Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Tamby Chik, Gerakan president Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon, and former deputy prime minister Ghaffar Baba."The 13-year jail sentence and fine of more than RM2 million meted out by the Sessions Court on a Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Assistant Superintendent for corruption proves that the commission does not protect anyone who has committed an offence.MACC Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Abu Kassim Mohamed said by virtue of the fact that the case was investigated and prosecuted by officers from the commission also proved that the commission is not biased.“I want to make it clear that we have zero tolerance towards corruption. (MACC) officers, no matter how good they are, if they are involved in matters affecting integrity, especially corruption, we will take action.“MACC regards this case as very serious. I hope it can give a signal to all government officers, including in MACC, to not be involved with corruption,” he told reporters here.Earlier, Abu Kassim opened a bowling tournament between MACC and the Singapore Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) in Seri Kembangan near here.Yesterday, MACC Assistant Superintendent M. Mohan (right), 39, was sentenced to 13 years’ jail time and fined RM2.275 million by the Shah Alam Sessions Court after he was found guilty of three counts of corruption three years ago.Abu Kassim said the sentence that was meted out was the most severe since the enforcement of the MACC Act 2009 which replaced the Anti-Corruption Act 1997.COMMENT: “Confusing” probably describes most of our initial attempts to get to the bottom of what the deal was between Talam Corporation and Selangor.With a little diligence, clear thinking and attention to detail however, most mysteries can be unravelled and articulated efficiently.
question is, if one were to look through Tan Sri Muhammad bin Haji Muhammad Taib declared income and tax record, would have been able to afford all the his present wealth with his mentri besar's salary?
This article attempts to explain in easy to understand terms the background and context of this issue, how Selangor recovered the debt owed to it by Talam, and how this debt recovery differs from the bailouts we have seen at the federal level.In the BeginningThe story begins in the late eighties and early nineties, with an engineer andproject manager who worked in Selangor state subsidiary PKNS – one Chan Ah Chye (right).This man later goes on to form Talam Corporation, and before long – possibly due to close connections with the ruling elite in Selangor, then headed by BN Menteri Besar Muhammad Muhammad Taib – he becomes a major player in the Selangor property and development scene.Over time, an extremely large amount of state land is alienated to Talam, who basically gets it for free. A strong imagination is not required to speculate in whose pockets any resulting profit eventually ends up.Talam’s modus operandi seems to be to pledge this land to the bank in exchange for huge loans, which they then use to finance their development and profit making projects. In essence, since they got the land free, they have successfully achieved money for nothing (it is uncertain as to whether “chicks for free” were involved).The ‘wise’ businessmen of that era believed in the dictum of never using your own money when you can use someone else’s. This heavy lending continued to characterise Talam’s business approach, and their loans consistently kept getting bigger and bigger.
Tumbling downOf course, no student of recent economic trends is unfamiliar with the concept of a bursting bubble.The financial collapse of the late nineties brings Talam’s debt-ridden house of cards crashing down. An overgearing of loans and inability to service them halts various half-completed projects, rendering them idle, half-built ruins.Incredibly however, this does not prevent Talam and their political patrons from altering their basic modus operandi.In 2001, under BN Menteri Besar Khir Toyo (left), three parcels of land are alienated by Selangor to Talam via their subsidiary Maxisegar Sdn Bhd, who undertakes to construct Unisel’s campus at an estimated cost of RM750 million.It will probably come as no surprise that Talam failed to complete this project. By September 2006, the company had been classified as an affected company under Practice Note 17 (PN 17), indicating dire financial straits.New Sheriff in townIn 2008, when Khalid Ibrahim assumes the Menteri Besar’s post, he inherits a situation in which Talam owes the state of Selangor and its subsidiaries (among other creditors), a great deal of money.Urban legend has it that when Talam was called in to explain why they have never endeavoured to pay their debts, the sheepish reply given was, “No one ever asked us to.”Thankfully for the citizens of Selangor, there was a new sheriff in town.Corporate finance is not only an area of expertise for Khalid (left) – it is a passion. With great gusto, he set out to solve this problem, and recover that which was owed by Talam to the people of Selangor.The problem was undoubtedly challenging, but after some work and careful strategising, a plan was set into motion.The end goal was simple: to leverage the assets still held by Talam to repay the debt Talam owed to the Selangor and its state subsidiaries.The technical nitty-grittyMaking this happen was a technically complicated process that required considerable financial acumen.
The summary is this: firstly, the debts that were owed by Talam to Selangor state subsidiaries were properly booked and accounted for – something that, very suspiciously, had not been done before. Once these debts were acknowledged by all parties, the debts were consolidated and transferred to one state subsidiary – Menteri Besar Incorporated (MBI), which was then responsible for collecting the debts from Talam in the form of land and cash.The rest of this section explains how this was done.It is a boring and complex explanation, but I list it here for the record and for those interested.Talam owed RM392 million to three Selangor state subsidiaries: KHSB, PIYSB, and PNSB. After acknowledging and booking these debts, the next step was to have another state subsidiary, Selangor Industrial Corporation (SIC), purchase these debts from the other three companies.A loan from CIMB Bank of RM 392 million was given to SIC to complete this purchase. In November 2009, the state exco and legislative assembly both approved a grant of RM392 million to MBI, which then used the funds to purchase the original consolidated debt from SIC. SIC then uses those funds to pay off their CIMB loan.The end result is as simple as the transaction itself is complex – without any major or excessive transactional expenses, Talam now owes the same amount of money to just one state subsidiary, instead of the original three.Restructuring and successful collectionIt is important to note that at no point are funds transferred from taxpayer monies to Talam. Funds have instead only been transferred from one pocket of the state to another.This differs wildly from federal bailouts of corporations like Indah Water Konsortium, MAS, or the Putra/Star LRT, where taxpayer money was injected directly into companies that had probably lost untold amounts via mismanagement, corruption and plundering.The transfers in the Talam debt restructuring allowed for a structure in which there is a clear acknowledgement and accounting for the RM392 million owed by Talam, and a single company for them to pay it to.The story does not end there.Another extremely important milestone in this tale is that MBI has in fact already succeeded in recovering all RM392 million in debt owed by Talam.For those who would like to keep score, this recovery came in two forms. RM340.88 million was recovered via acquisition of land and assets: 1,322 acres of land in Bukit Beruntung worth RM150.28 million, 2,264 acres of land in Bestari Jaya worth RM105.3 million, 400 acres of land in Ulu Yam and 60% equity in Ulu Yam Golf & Country Resort worth RM22.2 million, 134 acres of land in Danau Putra worth RM52.1 million and five office units in Menara Pandan worth RM11.1 million.
The remaining RM51.12 million was collected in cash: RM12 million from sales of land in Puncak Jalil, RM5 million in cash assignments from EON, RM7.68 million in payments by Unisel for earthworks, RM9.04 million from the sale of 25.94 acres of land in Bukit Beruntung, and RM17.4 million from sales of 218 acres of land in Bestari Jaya.
Go ahead, count it – it’s all there.Facts trump hype – againHow can we summarise this? For more than a decade under BN, one corporation owed the state hundreds of millions of ringgits.Within a year or two of taking over, Khalid managed to collect on these debts, instantly increasing the amount of money available to spend on welfare programmes throughout Selangor.
Scandal?Yes, it’s a scandal that Talam was allowed to get the free lunch it did under BN, and it’s a scandal that it took this long for to create the change in government that succeeded in cleaning up the mess.It would be insulting to suggest that this article is titled specifically in the hopes that Chua Tee Yong (left) would take the time to carefully peruse the facts within. Nevertheless, perhaps he may find the exercise beneficial in his longer term efforts to maintain what little credibility he has left.Said credibility is shrinking at about the same rate at which he is reducing the amount of money claimed to be ‘misused’ by Selangor – from RM1 billion, to RM260 million, to RM42 million. Before long, he may have to measure in sen instead.Perhaps Chua fancies himself a Rafizi Ramli. What he fails to understand however, is that Rafizi’s exposes are not just all about ‘glamorous’ press conferences and big numbers. Behind every expose is a ton of hard work and solid research.Behind Chua appears only to be blind ambition that extends far beyond ability, and a shameful mainstream media that think that hype can overturn facts.DO AS I SAY- Selangor MB spits out shocking conditions on Langat 2, water plant
TANJUNG KARANG: THE Parti Keadilan Rakyat-led Selangor government has issued a shocking ultimatum as anxiety deepens over an imminent water crisis in Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur.
The Selangor government is demanding that the Federal Government put in writing the proposed “post-Langat 2” water tariff and also declare water facilities worth RM10.5 billion as “state assets” before both parties could
even “discuss” about the Langat 2 treatment plant which would ensure sustainable supply till 2030.
Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, dictating the ground rules, said: “They have to do it in writing. They can’t just make verbal promises. This is not just a RM1 million deal. If they agree to put it in writing, then we can discuss.
“If they agree not to increase the water tariff, we also want to discuss the recognition of RM10.5 billion of Selangor’s assets. Then, I will tell the people of Selangor that this is a good deal for them. “If I am satisfied, they can even proceed
with Langat 3,” he told reporters at Karnival Terima Kasih Rakyat, here, yesterday. Khalid listed the RM10.5 billion in assets as pipes, treatment plants and dams which he claimed belonged to Selangor. Despite a body of facts to the contrary, the menteri besar maintained that the Langat 2 plant was not cost-effective compared with the reduction of non-revenue water (NRW) or transferring water from Kenyir Lake, which were the state’s proposals.
“We have other (cheaper) options to increase the volume of treated water in all existing treatment plants.
"If we agree to Langat 2 today, it will be completed only in two years. There is a company that can increase treated water production capacity using containerised membrane technology and this can be done in a year," he said.
The current demand had exceeded capacity as of May 17.
In an immediate reaction, Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui said if Abdul Khalid was sincere and did not want to see the people of Selangor facing a water crisis, he should not link the construction of Langat 2 to the restructuring of the water industry.
The menteri besar should not place many conditions before Langat 2 could proceed, Chin added.
"It is important for the plant to be built now so that it can be completed by 2016 or 2017.
"Negotiations for the details of the restructuring exercise can continue and both sides can seek the best way forward."
On Wednesday, Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry water sector senior division secretary Sutekno Ahmadbelon said it was more cost-efficient to build the Langat 2 water treatment plant than to reduce NRW in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
Sutekno said it would cost RM7.2 billion to reduce NRW from 32.3 per cent to 20.8 per cent, which would only provide an extra 500 million litres per day (MLD) compared with the total cost of the Pahang-Selangor Raw Water Transfer project, including the Langat 2 water treatment plant.
The water transfer project and Langat 2 would cost RM8.9 billion at 1,130 million litres per day in its first phase.
In Ampang, consumers were unnerved by the stalling tactics of the Selangor government over the Langat 2 water treatment plant.
A. Rahim, a pensioner, said a large number of residents in Pandan Indah were fearful that another bout of water disruption might occur very soon.
"It usually happens without warning. The recent disruption came and only after watching the news, did we know that this is a major crisis."
Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) said although the average water distribution ratio had decreased from 4,324.79 million litres per day to 4,364.10 million litres, the rate of clean water production from water treatment plants in the state still stood at a maximum volume of 4,371 million litres per day.
As expected, MCA MP for Labis Chua Tee Yong has declined to debate with DAP MP for PJ Utara Tony Pua over the Talam debt restructuring deal despite his claims of massive wrongdoing by the Pakatan Rakyat-led Selangor state government.
Tee Yong, who is also the son of scandal-tainted MCA president Chua Soi Lek, has been written off by many pundits and members of the public as a 'sure loser' if the debate took place. At 32, Tee Yong may be the one of the youngest 'Datuks' in the country but his oratorical skills and ability to articulate himself still needs seasoning.
Threatening to expose more Talam misdeeds by Mentri Besar Khalid Ibrahim's administration, Tee Yong also declined to respond to another Pakatan leader - PKR's Rafizi Ramli - who had a day ago warned that he would expose MCA's links with Talam.
“I am not going to respond to his statements and threats,” the MCA-owned Star newspaper reported Tee Yong as saying.
Glaring errors
"Datuk Chua (Tee Yong) has become an embarrassment for the MCA as he stumbles from one mega-blunder to another. I call upon Datuk Chua to end his misery once and for all, with a public and open debate in any language, at a time and place of his choosing, even if it is held at Wisma MCA over the Talam Debt Recovery: A Billion Ringgit Bailout or a Billion Ringgit Mega-Blunder," Tony had said in a statement.
Khalid has also announced Selangor would appoint 5 accounting firms to review the Talam deal. Tee Yong has also failed to respond to this. So far, he has clung on to his claims, despite the errors pointed out to him.
This perceived lack of fair play has sparked great public annoyance with him for being a sore loser.
Father and son 'disaster team' for the MCA
Earlier this week, MCA elders were forced to use the party grapevine to warn against a purported plan by Soi Lek to sell 45-acres of land belonging to Kolej Tunku Abdul Rahman for RM100mil.
The rumor sparked massive outrage as not only was the college land considered a 'sacred trust' to be reserved for future expansion, the price tag was shockingly low. One pundit said it was at least ten times less than the market value given the prime location of the land in Setapak, Kuala Lumpur and accused Soi Lek of trying to benefit himself and his cronies with the deal.
Like his embattled son, Soi Lek has come out to deny the rumor - pinning the blame on arch rival DAP.
“The motive to destroy MCA is clear as the rumour was spread right after the DAP insulted the inception of TARC during the debate on Sunday as there are people who do not wish to see the success of TARC,” Soi Lek said in a statement on Friday.
Cowardice in Malacca too
But instead of hitting Guan Eng directly, they did so through the Malacca state assembly, where Guan Eng's wife Betty Chew is the Kota Laksamana assemblywoman.
When Guan Eng challenged them to repeat their accusations outside the assembly where they would no longer enjoy legal immunity, Soi Lek and team did not do so for fear of being sued for defamation as they could not stump up the proof.
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