August 03, 2010
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 — DAP national publicity secretary Tony Pua called for transport minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha to be charged for his directive to Port Klang Authority (PKA) to repay bondholders. Pua said that Kong’s instruction for PKA to honour its final bond obligation of RM372 million, which was paid by July 30 despite the board’s ongoing suit against turnkey contractor Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB), could cause losses of RM1.4 billion to Putrajaya if PKA is unable to reclaim it from the latter.
“If the transport minister has failed to brief the Cabinet of the pertinent points with regards to the bond and the on-going litigation against KDSB by PKA, and should PKA be unable to reclaim the RM1.4 billion fraudulently claimed by KDSB, then Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha must be similarly charged in court like the former Transport Minister, Tun Ling Liong Sik, for allegedly defrauding the Cabinet and possibly even conspiring to cause massive losses to the government of Malaysia,” said Pua in a statement today.
The latest twist in the PKFZ scandal saw MCA ex-president Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik being charged in court on July 29 for allegedly deceiving the Cabinet about the land acquisition for the PKFZ project in Klang.
Dr Ling is the fifth and the highest-ranking person to be charged in relation to the PKFZ scandal.
The PKFZ project was initially estimated to cost less than RM2 billion but is expected cost as much as RM12.5 billion due to interest costs from deferred payments if the trans-shipment hub fails to perform.
Pua, also the Petaling Jaya Utara MP, lambasted Kong for “single-handedly” making the decision to repay RM222.58 million to Freezone Capital Bhd (FZCB) despite the PKA board of directors cautioning against the move pending litigation outcomes as KDSB might not refund the amount even if PKA were to win their case in court.
“Has the prime minister and the Cabinet been misled as well by Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha into believing that the government has no choice but to make the payment, despite the various letters of undertaking given by KDSB to its bondholders where in the eventuality where there is shortfall of payment from the government, KDSB will make up for such a shortfall?” asked Pua.
Pua also hit out at Kong for refusing to consider various suggestions to hold the payments due in escrow that will be issued to rightful parties only after the court case against KDSB has been concluded.
“Such recklessness can only be interpreted as an attempt to bail out KDSB from its predicament when its bondholders exercises the undertaking which has been issued by KDSB, where KDSB will be forced to make the hundreds of millions in outstanding bond repayments,” said Pua.
Putrajaya’s decree to PKA has come under fire from Pakatan Rakyat (PR), who claim that the Najib Administration is “bailing out” culprits behind the PKFZ scandal.
Kong had said that the Ministry would stick to the original schedule set before, which stipulates that the board had an obligation to fulfil a final payment of RM372 million, a second part of the RM723 million repayment due to bondholders this year.
Of the total, PKA paid RM222.58 million to Freezone Capital Bhd (FZCB) and the remaining RM150 million to the special port vehicle (SPV).
KDSB is now facing a suit of RM1.4 billion by the PKA for, among other things, allegations that it had made bloated claims for work done on the project.
“Who will then be responsible for this loss of RM1.4 billion litigation?” asked Pua. ”Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha must not evade accountability, and must immediately declare his willingness to take full responsibility for his actions in decreeing the payments to KDSB bondholders,” he added.
The board had last month disbursed some RM350 million to Transshipment Megahub Bhd (TMB) and Valid Ventures Bhd (VVB).
It is due to make more payments to three other SPVs besides FZCB up until 2017.
www.themalaysianinsider.com
“If the transport minister has failed to brief the Cabinet of the pertinent points with regards to the bond and the on-going litigation against KDSB by PKA, and should PKA be unable to reclaim the RM1.4 billion fraudulently claimed by KDSB, then Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha must be similarly charged in court like the former Transport Minister, Tun Ling Liong Sik, for allegedly defrauding the Cabinet and possibly even conspiring to cause massive losses to the government of Malaysia,” said Pua in a statement today.
The latest twist in the PKFZ scandal saw MCA ex-president Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik being charged in court on July 29 for allegedly deceiving the Cabinet about the land acquisition for the PKFZ project in Klang.
Dr Ling is the fifth and the highest-ranking person to be charged in relation to the PKFZ scandal.
The PKFZ project was initially estimated to cost less than RM2 billion but is expected cost as much as RM12.5 billion due to interest costs from deferred payments if the trans-shipment hub fails to perform.
Pua, also the Petaling Jaya Utara MP, lambasted Kong for “single-handedly” making the decision to repay RM222.58 million to Freezone Capital Bhd (FZCB) despite the PKA board of directors cautioning against the move pending litigation outcomes as KDSB might not refund the amount even if PKA were to win their case in court.
“Has the prime minister and the Cabinet been misled as well by Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha into believing that the government has no choice but to make the payment, despite the various letters of undertaking given by KDSB to its bondholders where in the eventuality where there is shortfall of payment from the government, KDSB will make up for such a shortfall?” asked Pua.
Pua also hit out at Kong for refusing to consider various suggestions to hold the payments due in escrow that will be issued to rightful parties only after the court case against KDSB has been concluded.
“Such recklessness can only be interpreted as an attempt to bail out KDSB from its predicament when its bondholders exercises the undertaking which has been issued by KDSB, where KDSB will be forced to make the hundreds of millions in outstanding bond repayments,” said Pua.
Putrajaya’s decree to PKA has come under fire from Pakatan Rakyat (PR), who claim that the Najib Administration is “bailing out” culprits behind the PKFZ scandal.
Former transport minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat, who had called for a freeze last month on all repayments to KDSB bondholders, also questioned Putrajaya’s decision to force PKA to pay KDSB bondholders, expressing scepticism of the government’s argument that failure to pay bondholders would lead to adverse effects on the local bond market.
Kong had said that the Ministry would stick to the original schedule set before, which stipulates that the board had an obligation to fulfil a final payment of RM372 million, a second part of the RM723 million repayment due to bondholders this year.
Of the total, PKA paid RM222.58 million to Freezone Capital Bhd (FZCB) and the remaining RM150 million to the special port vehicle (SPV).
KDSB is now facing a suit of RM1.4 billion by the PKA for, among other things, allegations that it had made bloated claims for work done on the project.
“Who will then be responsible for this loss of RM1.4 billion litigation?” asked Pua. ”Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha must not evade accountability, and must immediately declare his willingness to take full responsibility for his actions in decreeing the payments to KDSB bondholders,” he added.
The board had last month disbursed some RM350 million to Transshipment Megahub Bhd (TMB) and Valid Ventures Bhd (VVB).
It is due to make more payments to three other SPVs besides FZCB up until 2017.
www.themalaysianinsider.com
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