Parliament rejects motion to discuss RCI on 1MDB
Parliament has rejected a motion to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to probe government-owned strategic investor 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), following concerns over its operations and burgeoning debts of more than RM42 billion.
Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia rejected Datuk Mahfuz Omar's (PAS - Pokok Sena) motion in Chambers, citing Putrajaya's ongoing efforts to tackle the strategic development firm's problems.
"This includes the review by the National Audit Department, of which report of the audit will be tabled to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
"There are also questions on 1MDB which the government will answer in this sitting," Pandikar said in his letter to Mahfuz today, explaining the rationale for shooting down the motion. In expressing his regrets over the rejection of the motion, Mahfuz questioned the credibility of the A-G,
citing the non-tabling of the audit report on the management of the 2011 - 2013 National Youth Day
celebrations.
He claimed until today, the report was not tabled in parliament.
He is also worried that the audit might not be thorough and that at the end, 1MDB's alleged
mismanagement might be swept under the carpet.
"I am worried the audit is conducted because of the directive, and that a 'halal' certificate will be issued so that in the end, all the financial mismanagement, abuse of power and breach of trust committed will
disappear," he alleged.
Criticism was mounting over the wholly owned Finance Ministry investment vehicle, established in 2009, which had chalked up debts of up to RM42 billion.
Scrutiny on it has grown more intense recently following whistleblower site Sarawak Report's exposés last week that have piled pressure on prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and prompted opposition politicians, former Umno leaders and anti-graft bodies to demand a thorough investigation into the fund.
Last Wednesday, Najib ordered the country's auditor-general to "independently verify 1MDB's accounts", with the findings to be passed to the PAC Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang yesterday told the media that the national auditor's inspection of 1MDB's account had started, but did not set a time frame to complete the audit.
The national auditor's finding on 1MDB is key as it precedes further action by Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), as well as the police's own investigation.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the force's own probe into 1MDB would be contingent on the national auditor finding any "discrepancies or indications of wrongdoing".
Singapore's Business Times report yesterday reported that Putrajaya had issued 1MDB a RM970 million loan, after a Cabinet meeting last month to discuss injecting funds into the debt-laden investor.
Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah revised the figure downwards to RM950 million, telling Parliament this morning that the fund was a standby credit for the firm, and expressed confidence that the company's cash-flow problems would be solved with an IPO (initial public offering) for its power plant assets, which had been postponed twice now. – March 12, 2015.
