I am posing three questions on the RM50 million Pempena Group of Companies scandals for the Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman to answer in Parliament next week since the non-functioning Pempena Executive Chairman Datuk Paduka Chew Mei Fun has clamped up and refused to accept accountability.
Firstly, why was PricewaterhouseCooper engaged to conduct a high-level business review of Pempena’s 14 Investee Companies and not on all its 24 Investee Companies – especially as most of the 24 investee companies have not been recording operational profits over the last three years.
Out of these selected 14 investee companies reviewed, PwhC has proposed that Pempena should “exit its investments” from five companies, suffering an immediate loss of RM20 million. The five companies are:
(i) Malaysia Tourism Executive Sdn Bhd (“Matex”)
(ii) Sri Kebaya Restaurant Sdn Bhd (“Sri Kebaya”)
(iii) Malaysia Restaurant Hyderabad Limited (“Awana Hyderabad”)
(iv) Dalamasa
(v) Nathena
PwhC also proposed the liquidation of another company, My Destination, which will involve a loss of RM7.5 million – making a total loss of RM27.5 million for the “exiting” from five companies and the liquidation of one!
But these are not the only losses confronting Tourism Ministry and its subsidiary, the Pempena Group of Companies as the 10 Pempena Investee companies which had been deliberately excluded in the PwhC review, are very sick companies.
These 10 Pempena companies excluded from PwhC review are in very parlous state as they included six Investee Companies which do not have any financial information and three Investee Companies with only partial financial information.
If these 10 “sick” and even bankrupt Pempena subsidiaries are taken into account for exiting investment or liquidation, it would mean that as many as 16 of the 24 Pempena Investee Companies have to be closed down bringing the total losses to RM40 to RM50 million.
The first question is why these 10 “worst” Pempena Investee Companies were excluded from PwhC review? What is the fate and future of these 10 companies.
What will be the total losses that would be incurred by Pempena Group of Companies if all the 18 of the 24 subsidiary companies are to be closed down.
Secondly, why was “placement of funds in the money market and units trusts” one of the three “key activities” of the Pempena business plan, when the objective of Pempena is to promote tourism?
Azalina should give a full profit and loss report in Parliament of Pempena’s dabbling in the money market and unit trusts using public funds meant specifically for promoting tourism.
Thirdly, why is Pempena, the Tourism Ministry and Azalina making a mockery of the pledge by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi that upholding accountability and integrity will be his final legacy to the country?
If the Tourism Ministry and Pempena can refuse to table in Parliament and make public the internal audit report of the RM50 million Pempena Group of Companies scandals, which were completed more than three months ago in August, just because it contained a huge can of worms about fraud, criminal breach of trust, misappropriation of public funds and abuse of power, what is the difference between the last months of the Abdullah premiership as compared to the last five years of Abdullah administration or the previous 22-year Mahathir premiership?
The Pempena Executive Chairman Datuk Paduka Chew Mei Fun should be answering these questions but she does not seem to realize or appreciate that she is paid RM10,000 a month by taxpayers and has refused to accept accountability as the CEO of Pempena.
I am still waiting for Chew’s application and cv as she had asked whether I would employ and “feed” her if she is no more Pempena Chairman.
However, Chew should realize that one of the essential conditions of service if I employ her is that she must accept the principles of accountability, transparency and good governance. Maybe Pempena and the Ministry of Tourism are the only places where she could get away with impunity with her irresponsible attitude of clamping up and refusing to accept responsibility and accountability which comes from her job specification.
sigh, why can’t Malaysian office bearers answers difficult questions properly without using evasive and attention diverting approach?
As I have said all along, it’s better for Pempena Sdn. Bhd. to fold up and close shop in the final countdown! The Tourism Minister has promised to look into the matter. What is there to look into anymore? Just close shop and save the agony of answers and public money. No one wants to take the rap for lack of responsibility, accountability and transparency!
If there is nothing to hide, why the reluctance to answer questions? She’s acting like Razak Bugundu, acting dumb and passing the buck to others
If you go round the schools nowadays, you will see numerous students such as Chew, pleading innocence and refusing to admit their involvement in stealing, vandalism and other cases of gross indiscipline. When these students grow up we shall be getting more and more scoundrels such as Chew
They are still living in the past, responsibility, accountability and transparency are not in the umno/bn rules. They just do as they like, suck as much as they can and just leave the rakyat to suffer.
Malaysia For All
GE 13 – No matter what, we must ensure that racist umno bn do not regain the power like they had for the past fifty one years.
The Ministry and its officers should all be taken to task if they are guilty of such acts. Enough is Enough
This is a legalised pirate organisation. what is the difference between it and the Somalian pirates? They all rob the money
We must overthrew this corrupted governor the sooner the better.
The corruption they committed cases accumulated in numbers can produced a first corruption encyclopedia in the world.
Explain to the rakyat, what will suffer if all the government tax money have been robbed by the governor. All this while, what all Malaysian see the Malaysia report earning amount mayb an illusion incorrect.
Have the government report how much this country loan correct number?
be prepared to get shock find out the corruption case accumulated firgure this governor committed be great SHOCK.
We must overthrew this corrupted governor, stop the corruption as soon as possible else later amount getting bigger and bigger yearly, we all Malaysian may get HEART ATTACK unable to take the huge amount loss in corruption they done.
MCA(Malaysian Cabaret Association) and Girl&rakan, the super duper traitor, hypocrite and liar.
GLC lost a lot money = the money went into ?someone? pocket
Hello Bihun Goreng,
You think we are so stupid ah. Everyone of us have to work damn hard to earn a simple living. Not as lucky as you, appointed and get gaji buta.
So sorry that you have to lick their [deleted] for your living!
You can expose and post as many questions to this idiot minister.
She will not respond….as the pack of wolves are covering each others backside.
But we must keep on exposing..till the next election.
For that…hats off to the ever energetic…dedicated true Malaysian….Mr. Lim Kit Siang.
Without him….all the crisis and corruptions …..not known….as no one is as brave Malaysian as he is.
Mahathir loves to prove DAP is a Malaysian Chinese base party…..to confuse voters and support the race and religion politcs…by dividing his own race.
But then…he is more an Indian than a Malay.
That’s why…he divide the Muslims…made the half past sixes..without any guilty conscience.
YET!!….So many still think this devil is a saint ..because of his his namesake and religion only.
Real low class IQ….some of them have.
Tell them the Malay, it doesn’t matter DAP Chinese base party cos it is very important we Malaysian need a governor with honest and anti-corruption.
Don’t they see mostly chinese base governor countries is very rich countries like China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong. All these countries governor efficient with great respect from the world leaders.
This country Malaysia go to be bankrupt if there is nothing to stop the current corrupted government.
This country Malaysia going to be richer for all Malaysian to share if there is a honest efficient goverment administration.
Which one will they want ask them all the Malaysian?
Let’s us all a hand of vote overthrew this corrupted goverment to the Strait of Malaca and bye bye to them.
Will any Malaysian do that?
Dear LKS,
Perhaps i can offer her a job in my company but with condition, NO OFFICE POLITIC.
seem like this trend is becoming a norm, a boss who can not boss, a worker who do not work, a company that have no problem losing money, public money got spend for nothing,
so to rectify the problem EPF money is drain to “help” a Losing Money Company that paid a boss who do not boss over the workers who do not work.
This will go on and on until something break and we are in deep shit.
you said yourself “non-functioning Pempena Executive”, why would she have to responsible for the mess then….
plz stop lambasting her as she might lose her job in this “recession” period. btw, malaysia is not in recession, isn’t it?
“melurian Says:
you said yourself “non-functioning Pempena Executive”, why would she have to responsible for the mess then….
plz stop lambasting her as she might lose her job in this “recession” period. btw, malaysia is not in recession, isn’t it?”
I’m afraid we have to screen/check/lambasting her as she failed to noticed all this crap going around, wasting our money. Pls, she already proved she is not competent to run or control companies , don even mention the ministry post. FAILED !!!
she ‘s a “non-functioning Pempena Executive -lah, can’t you read properly. It’s totally unfair to pin all the blames on her!
melurian Says:
she ’s a “non-functioning Pempena Executive -lah, can’t you read properly. It’s totally unfair to pin all the blames on her!
HO HO HO. You are so blind yourself. She is executive chairman who took 10k every month. Can’t you see….”executive” . not non-executive chairman.
Look like you better go back to business school. Non executive chairman don have to know all the details but still carry some responsibility. She is executive chairman who took salary. Who say she can get off easily?? If like that, all listing companies will do all magical tricks on the account. Non functioning ? My foot. Simply take salary with executive position, are you kidding me? Executive not wayang kulit ok?
Oh another thing is she is non functioning not because the company appointed her that way. She is non functioning because Lim Kit Siang labelled her that way, cos she is not doing her work while she is the executive chairman taking salary.Non functioning = sleeping….get it? Duh…. So pls read carefully and pls go back and ask your teacher what is executive means.
YB What happen after all your efforts against the ministry, we do not know if you do let us know