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RM4.6b PKFZ scandal – OTK should answer five questions and not just rehash chronology of events

Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Kiat should not dilly-dally or backtrack from his repeated promises eight months ago to “tell all” about the RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.

For instance, the Star report of April 8, 2008 headlined “Ong to tell all on Port Klang Free Zone” quoted him as saying:

“I wish to inform the rakyat about the true situation – whether it was actually squandered, not squandered, and where it has gone to, as well as the breakdown of the budget.”

Now, Ong is backpedaling from his promise, as he said yesterday that he would announce the chronology of events in the PKFZ issue but not into its financial aspects – allegedly because PricewaterhouseCoopers “is still finetuning its report on the financial aspects involving PKFZ as there are some formalities it needs to look through before concluding the report”.

This is a most extraordinary turn of events as more than a month ago, Ong had said publicly that the PricewaterhouseCoopers report into the PKFZ scandal was ready to be made public “soon”.

The Star report of Nov. 16, “Report into PKFZ scandal to be made public soon” quoted Ong as promising that “everything would be settled” by the fourth quarter of this year and that he would reveal what had been compiled.

Let me tell Ong: don’t just rehash the chronology of events of the PKFZ scandal (I doubt he would have anything new to add to what I had revealed already in Parliament on the PKFZ chronology of events) but just answer the five questions about the RM4.6 billion PKFZ scandal which I had posed to him more than eight months ago on April 9, 2008, viz:

1. Was it true that when the Port Klang Authority and the Transport Ministry insisted on buying the 1,000 acres of Pulau Indah land for PKFZ at RM25 psf on a “willing buyer, willing seller” basis, in the face of strong objection by the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the Treasury which had recommended that the land be acquired at RM10 psf, the Cabinet had given its approval subject to two conditions: (i) categorical assurance by the Transport Minister that the PKFZ proposal was feasible and self-financing and would not require any public funding; and (ii) that every RM100 million variation in the development costs of PKFZ would require prior Cabinet approval.

2. In the event, the first condition was breached when the PKFZ project ballooned from RM1.1 billion to RM4.6 billion requiring government intervention and bailout while the second condition was breached with the original PKFZ development costs of RM400 million ballooning to RM2.8 billion without any prior Cabinet approval ever sought for every RM100 million increase in development costs.

3. The Transport Minister had unlawfully issued four Letters of Support to Kuala Dimensi Sdn. Bhd (KDSB), the PKFZ turnkey contractor — to raise RM4 billion bonds, which were regarded as government guarantees by the market. The Transport Minister had no such powers to issue financial guarantees committing the government, as it could only be issued by the Finance Minister and only after Cabinet approval. The first Letter of Support was issued by the former Transport Minister, Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik on May 28, 2003, which was Liong Sik’s last day as Transport Minister while the other three were issued by Liong Sik’s successor, Datuk Seri Chong Kong Choy.

4. Whether it wasn’t true that in recognition that the four unlawful “Letters of Support” of the Transport Minister had nonetheless given implicit government guarantee to the market that the Cabinet had in middle of last year gave retrospective approval for the unlawful and unauthorized four Letters of Support by the Transport Ministers in the past four years creating RM4.6 billion liability for the government in the bailout of PKFZ.

5. Why no action had been taken against the two previous Transport Ministers, both Liong Sik and Kong Choy, as well as the government officials responsible for the unlawful issue of the four “Letters of Support” – getting the government embroiled in the RM4.6 billion PKFZ scandal?

19 Replies to “RM4.6b PKFZ scandal – OTK should answer five questions and not just rehash chronology of events”

  1. Dear YB

    All this Ongtalk means that he and MCA are cooking the books and the report.

    Next, Ong will say that it happened during his predecessors tenure of office and attempt to pass the buck.

    YB, just concentrate on th essentials:
    1. Who gave the approval to buy land at over-inflated value.

    2. Who approved expenditure up to $4 billion without authority. Get the ACA in on (1) & (2) to rceover fraudulently purchased land.

    3. Show proper workings if the project cost can be recovered. If they talk about Govt guarantees and the Govt incurring more costs before the project becomes viable at some indeterminate time in future, just shut the whole damn thing NOW, before it becomes another Perwaja or Silterra!!
    http://donplaypuks.blogspot.com

  2. YB Lim, give a little of chance lah. UMNOputeras have repeatedly screwed and robbed the Govt coffers without blinking an eye. MCA the beggar, is doing likewise. Don’t expect any fruit explanation or a worthy account from OKT, for the public to scrutinize. Since when the UMNO-BN regime have honorable and decent
    MPs?
    “Robbers and thieves have to wear head masks and hand gloves to avoid being identified”

  3. Why, if Ling and Chan signed letters of support without cabinet approval, then let the creditors go after them as guarantors. Financial institutions that lend willy nilly should suffer the consequences.

    If they can bankrupt a Sultan, they can bankrupt a Tun.

    YAY!

  5. The PKZ project is UMNO’s biggest and most brazen ‘curi duit rakyat’ deal. Public money was being dished out any old how – land acquisition, construction cost, M&E specs way over budget, etc – all ‘shared’ amongst cronies and associates.

    Ong TK is currently in a bind knowing the spotlight falls on one Azim Zabidi(current UMNO Treasurer) upon revelation of PWC report. Dealings with Kuala Dimensi was big, receivables from company accounts are mind boggling and the cast of people are all associates of UMNO led BN.

    All said, it is safe to assume hundreds of million was dispensed with and project managers not having to account for the in’s/out’s once the ‘projek’ got the Govt’s stamp of guarantee by way of Ling-Ling’s letter of support.

  6. He dare not tell all.
    Which UMNO or BN ever tell all on corruptions?
    Master of all liars…ex UMNO man…and ex PM also said will tell all corrupted UMNO ministers…one month ago.
    All have onion skin faces and all are munafiks.

  10. What is the point of a minister like Ong Tee Kiat to tell the cock and bull story of ‘chronology of events’ instead of the root cause of the failure of PKFZ, and the huge sum of money going down the drain due to abuse, mismanagement and possible corruption.

    Who want to know the ‘chronology of events’? Serve no purpose nor any meaning to the rakyat. Ong Tee Kiat, as a person and as a minister, is playing delaying tactics and hopefully he is able to wear down the memory of the people of this country so that all will be forgotten.

    What kind of leader is this guy from this kind of a party? Answer is obvious.

  11. DON;T EXPECT THIS OTK GUY TO DISCLOSE EVERYTHING. YOU KNOW WHY. IF HANKY PANKY IS INVOLVED, THOSE INVOLVED ARE HIS FRIENDS WHETHER FROM MCA OR UMNO. ANYWAY, 4.4 BILLION IS A LOT OF MONEY AND YOU CAN REST ASSURED A PART OF THAT AMOUNT HAVE GONE INTO SOMEBODY’S POCKET

  13. Hi rubini,

    MACC is not yet tested whether is resistant prove to powerful institute influence yet. Passing the bill is a final resort for the umno sendiwara to bet on their do or die move or in another word is to save their ass from prosecuted from the past wrong doing, at the same time, passing the bill do good for them to monitor opposition administration in the near future meanwhile BN crooks able to form as a strong opposition party when they are no longer in power. Umno them stage a comeback to rule again. Barisan Nasional well aware their popularity is no longer in need by current smart generation rakyat.

  14. Throw BN out of Sarawak

    The Sarawak state assembly currently has a total of 71 seats. Taib’s PBB holds 35 seats, the Sarawak United Progressive Party (SUPP) 11 seats, the Sarawak Progressive Development Party (SPDP) eight and Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) eight, for a total of 62 seats.

    According to reliable sources, the BN could lose up to 30 seats in the next state elections, which would mean that Pakatan Rakyat just needs to capture six extra seats to win power, if the elections were held today.

  16. Only Talk Kok from Money Churning Association
    Only Take Kash from Money Come Always
    Others Take Krap from Major Crap Artistes

    There are still people who believe in the MCA ‘struggle.’ What the heck is their struggle? Selling out Chinese? Selling out the future of Malaysia? Making our ancestors turn in their graves? Eroding our right to an equal existence without any form of discrimination?

    There are still many people who support Only Talk Kok and Chew May13 Fun. God save Malaysia and our future here in this land of our birth.

  19. Malaysia has one of the highest fatality rate in car accidents in this world.

    So far what had OTK done to improve our road safety?
    Look at our roads, they are full of death traps and potholes.

    BTW, why don’t we tighten up level of driving tests? Kids got driving licence too easily!
    Why we are allowing people with stacks of speeding summons back to our highways?
    Why there are so many malfunction traffic lights?

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