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Stepson of Malaysia’s Najib Razak Bought $34 Million London House With 1MDB Funds

By SIMON CLARK, GEORGI KANTCHEV and BRADLEY HOPE
Wall Street Journal
May 19, 2016

Investigators believe that money from the Malaysian fund was used to buy home in 2012

The stepson of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak bought a £23.25 million ($33.6 million) house in central London in 2012 with money originating from the troubled Malaysian state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Bhd., according to people familiar with the situation.

The redbrick four-story house, built around 1900, is part of a row set back from the road and protected by security gates, a short walk from Malaysia’s diplomatic mission in London’s exclusive Belgravia neighborhood. The registered owner of the house is Qentas Holdings Ltd., a company based in the British Virgin Islands. Mr. Najib’s stepson is the beneficial owner, the people familiar said.

Investigators believe that money from the Malaysian fund known as 1MDB was used to buy the house in July 2012. The Wall Street Journal has previously reported that Riza Aziz, a film producer and stepson of the Malaysian leader, used money that originated from 1MDB to buy $50 million worth of properties in New York and Los Angeles and to finance the 2013 movie “The Wolf of Wall Street.” Continue reading “Stepson of Malaysia’s Najib Razak Bought $34 Million London House With 1MDB Funds”

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Azalina has committed double contempt of Parliament when she defended her lie in Parliament in her reply to Guan Eng on the PAC Report on 1MDB

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman had committed a double contempt of Parliament when she defended her lie in Parliament in her reply to DAP MP for Bagan, Lim Guan Eng, claiming that Public Accounts Committee (PAC) members were informed about the deleted lines from the PAC Report on 1MDB.

In her written reply on Monday, Azalina had lied that PAC Chairman Datuk Hasan Arifin had informed or showed PAC members letter from Bank Negara Malaysia which stated that the information provided to the PAC was confidential for the purpose of intelligence only and not for court usage or public consumption.

DAP MP for PJ Utara, Tony Pua, who is a PAC Member has described Azalina’s answer as a lie, making very clear that after the the final PAC meeting on April 4 which approved the PAC report on 1MDB for publication, Hasan “never at any point of time communicated with the PAC members on any developments subsequent to the meeting on April 4”.

I have spoken to the Deputy Chairman of PAC, Dr. Tan Seng Giaw (MP – Kepong) and he has confirmed that what Pua said was true and factual, and that PAC members were never informed about Bank Negara’s letter before PAC Report on 1MDB was tabled in Parliament on April 7, and that Azalina had told a lie in Parliament.

Thus, when Azalina yesterday denied that she lied to Parliament when she said PAC members had been informed about the deleted lines in the PAC report on 1MDB, and that Pua’s statement was untrue and made without any basis, Azalina had committed a double contempt of Parliament. Continue reading “Azalina has committed double contempt of Parliament when she defended her lie in Parliament in her reply to Guan Eng on the PAC Report on 1MDB”

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Call for public inquiry into the tragic helicopter crash during the 11th Sarawak general election causing the death of six people, including a deputy minister and another MP

The 11th Sarawak state general election has ended on May 7 polling with fairly expected results, the re-election of Tan Sri Adenan Satem as Sarawak Chief Minister, the formation of the new Sarawak State Government by Sarawak Barisan Nasional and the failure to deny Adenan two-thirds majority in the 82-seat Sarawak State Assembly.

I had publicly predicted these three results after Nomination Day on April 25, and I was not greatly surprised by the outcome of the 11th Sarawak state general elections.

One of the disappointments of the 11th Sarawak state general elections was the inability of Pakatan Harapan to campaign as one team, and which saw multi-cornered contests even involving Pakatan Harapan parties, but the results have shown that it had not materially affected the results of the Sarawak state general election.

A combined and united Pakatan Harapan in the Sarawak state general election would have found it difficult to regain the 15 state assembly seats won by DAP and PKR five years ago in the 2011 state general election, but there is no doubt that the failure to present an united front by Pakatan Harapan parties caused great disappointment all-round and should be a lesson to all Pakatan Harapan parties for the future. Continue reading “Call for public inquiry into the tragic helicopter crash during the 11th Sarawak general election causing the death of six people, including a deputy minister and another MP”

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Would Azalina refer herself to the Committee of Privileges for lying in Parliament or would there be an Acting Minister in the PM’s Department appointed to be in charge of parliamentary affairs to refer Azalina to Committee of Privileges?

Would the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said refer herself to the Parliamentary Committee of Privileges for lying in Parliament, or would there be an Acting Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department appointed to be in charge of parliamentary affairs to refer Azalina to the Committee of Privileges?

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) member and DAP MP for PJ Utara, Tony Pua has made a very serious charge that Azalina had lied in replying to the DAP MP for Bagan Lim Guan Eng that PAC members were informed about the deleted lines from the PAC Report on 1MDB.

Pua said Azalina lied in Parliament when she said in her parliamentary reply on Monday that the PAC Chairman Datuk Hasan Arifin had informed or showed PAC members letter from Bank Negara Malaysia which stated that the information provided to the PAC was confidential and not for public consumption.

Azalina had replied to Guan Eng that Hasan had received Bank Negara’s information which stated all the information given was “confidential for the purpose of intelligence only and not for court usage or public report” and that all PAC members were informed of the matter via a letter penned by the PAC chief to the deputy governor of the central bank on April 6.

I have received confirmation from the Deputy Chairman of PAC, Dr. Tan Seng Giaw (Kepong) that PAC members were never informed about the matter by the PAC Chairman on April 6 and that Azalina had told a lie in Parliament. Continue reading “Would Azalina refer herself to the Committee of Privileges for lying in Parliament or would there be an Acting Minister in the PM’s Department appointed to be in charge of parliamentary affairs to refer Azalina to Committee of Privileges?”

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Zahid Hamidi should tender apology to Maria Chin and Tony Pua and take immediate action to restore their fundamental democratic right to travel freely overseas

The ban on Bersih Chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah from travel overseas confirms the age-old maxim “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” and the need for constant vigilance as well as effective checks-and-balance against abuses and excesses of power.

But what has come as a surprise is that the former PAC Chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed should be afflicted by this human failing so quick and fast less than a year after his appointment as Deputy Home Minister when he said yesterday that the government need not have to give reasons for barring Maria Chin from leaving Malaysia.

The ban on Maria Chin from travelling overseas is wrong on three grounds. Continue reading “Zahid Hamidi should tender apology to Maria Chin and Tony Pua and take immediate action to restore their fundamental democratic right to travel freely overseas”

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Myths about the forthcoming Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary by-elections

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has said that he would reshuffle his Cabinet.

Instead of reshuffling his jumbo-sized Cabinet of 36 Ministers, he should do some pruning and remove his Cabinet of deadwood and half-past six Ministers, starting with Najib himself relinquishing the Finance Minister’s portfolio and more than halving the number of Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department who now comprise some 30 per cent of the Cabinet.

How many of the 36 Ministers were in Parliament yesterday to pay last respects to two BN/UMNO Members of Parliament, Sungai Besar MP Datuk Noriah Kasnon who was Deputy Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities and Kuala Kangsar MP Datuk Wan Mohammad Khair-jl Anuar Wan Ahmad, who was also the Malaysian Palm Oil Board Chairman, in the minute of silence observed at the beginning of Parliament?

The first row of the first block in Parliament headed by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi, the Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai and the Health Minister Datuk S. Subramaniam was totally empty while the first block was virtually empty!

Why were some 90 per cent of the jumbo-sized Cabinet absent in Parliament yesterday to pay the one-minute last respect to Noriah and Wan Mohammad Khairil?

There have been some myths about the impending Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary by-elections, with nomination fixed for June 5 and polling on June 18. Continue reading “Myths about the forthcoming Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary by-elections”

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Four ways for Najib and Parliament to redeem their abject failure to ensure responsibility and accountability for first global financial scandal in nation’s history

I have visited 130 parliamentary constituencies in the country in my nation-wide “Pantang Undur – Berani kerana Benar” nation-wide tour during my six-month suspension from Parliament in October last year.

Only three days ago, I visited Kuala Terengganu, Marang, Setiu and Besut in Terengganu and Pasir Puteh in Kelantan.

Wherever I went in the 130 Parliamentary constituencies in the past six months, Malaysians regardless of race, religion or region want the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razal to answer the two simple questions about his global financial scandal – where the money came from and where the money had gone to! Continue reading “Four ways for Najib and Parliament to redeem their abject failure to ensure responsibility and accountability for first global financial scandal in nation’s history”

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Learning Islam From Muslims, and Muslims Learning Islam

Bakri Musa
16th May 2016

A Review of Shahab Ahmed’s What Is Islam. The Importance of Being Islamic

Second of Two Parts

In the first part of my essay I recalled Shahab Ahmed’s elegant albeit oxymoronic phrase “coherent contradictions” to describe the dizzying diversity and puzzling perplexities that are the norms in Islam, then and now.

As for “reforming” Islam, the current fetish among Muslims and non-Muslims alike, Ahmed did not have much praise or hope for these reformers, ancient or modern. This was not out of any Islam-does-not-need-reforming sentiment, rather that those reformers limited themselves to reading only the Text (Koran) and then were consumed with their arcane legalistic and hermeneutical interpretations. They ignored the “Pre-Text” and “Con-Text,” or more crucially, how Islam is believed, practiced, and contributed to by Muslims past and present, scholars and ordinary believers alike.

Or in Shahab Ahmed’s words, “how Islam makes Muslims as Muslims make Islam.” Much can be learned about Islam, and about Muslims, from just that. Continue reading “Learning Islam From Muslims, and Muslims Learning Islam”

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Victory and insecurity – Sarawak results and trajectories

By Bridget Welsh
13 May 2016, 11:25 am
Malaysia Kini

With the ‘landslide’ results of the Sarawak election last week, it would appear on the surface that Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has been given a political reprieve. His close ally Sarawak’s Chief Minister Adenan Satem secured an overwhelming majority of 72 out of 82 seats, or 87 percent of the seats.

The Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition gained 8.3 percent of the popular vote, to a total of 63.7 percent compared to the 55.4 percent it won in 2011.

It would seem that the message sent across the world was that Sarawakians support the BN. They appear to care little for corruption, abuse of power, an electoral system that relies on massive vote buying, gross distortions of electoral constituencies and abuse of political position against opposition alternatives.

They were not moved by one of the most serious global money-laundering scandals. In fact, while this may be true for some of the electorate, this reading of the election is not complete.
Continue reading “Victory and insecurity – Sarawak results and trajectories”

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I have visited 130 parliamentary constituencies during my six-month suspension from Parliament and all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region want Najib to answer two simple questions about Najib’s global financial scandal – where the money came from and where the money had gone to!

This morning, I want to report to the voters of Gelang Patah that I have visited 130 parliamentary constituencies in the country during my six-month suspension from Parliament and I will return to Parliament tomorrow.

Only two days ago, I visited Kuala Terengganu, Marang, Setiu and Besut in Terengganu and Pasir Puteh in Kelantan.

Wherever I went in the 130 Parliamentary constituencies in the past six months, Malaysians regardless of race, religion or region want Najib to answer the two simple questions about his global financial scandal – where the money came from and where the money had gone to!

I apologise to the people of Gelang Patah for being suspended for six months from Parliament, not because I had stolen, robbed, murdered or guilty of corruption, but because I had wanted the Prime Minister to answer two simple questions about his global financial scandals – Where the money came from and where the money have gone to.

Six months later, Najib has not been able to answer these two simple questions, but his twin mega scandals have continue to mushroom to become ever more monstrous, with Malaysia topping the global charts as among the most corrupt nations in the world like the third place in international website, foreignpolicy.com’s ranking of the world’s “worst corruption scandal in 2015” at the end of last year, TIME magazine’s second ranking of “global corruption” in March or the Economist’s second placing in its second index of crony capitalism early this month.

Six months ago, we were talking about Najib’s RM2.6 billion “donation” scandal and the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal – today, we are talking about Najib’s RM4.2 billion “donation” scandal and the RM50-55 billion 1MDB scandal! Continue reading “I have visited 130 parliamentary constituencies during my six-month suspension from Parliament and all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region want Najib to answer two simple questions about Najib’s global financial scandal – where the money came from and where the money had gone to!”

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Johor should take over the baton from Sarawak to be the vanguard for political change in Malaysia

At the mid-point of the 11th Sarawak state general election campaign on April 30, I warned that seven of the 13 seats carved out of the 12 State Assembly constituencies won by DAP in last general election were in “danger list” for the May 7 poll.

A week later, on Polling Day, I was proved right when DAP could only win seven of the 12 seats won five years ago.

DAP Sarawak fought the 11th Sarawak state general election with two objectives:

(I) to defend and win the 13 State Assembly seats carved out of the 12 DAP seats
won in the last general elections; and

(2) to achieve a breakthrough in the Dayak-dominated seats to expand DAP support from the urban areas.

I had hoped that DAP candidate Modi Bimol could win the Tasik Biru state assembly seat, and that was why I was in Tasek Biru on Nomination Day.

But the combined artillery and firepower of the Barisan Nasional national and state “heavyweights” including the Sarawak Chief Minister and the Malaysian Prime Minister who led a long queue of State and Federal VIPS to descend on the constituency with monetary offers and other goodies, succeeded in foiling Modi from the DAP election breakthrough. In the event, Modi lost by 1,288 votes.

I had right from the beginning of the election campaign acknowledged that the 11th Sarawak state general election was not about deciding who would be the Sarawak Chief Minister and who would form the Sarawak State Government as both these questions had already been decided on Nomination Day – i.e. Adenan Satem as Sarawak Chief Minister and Sarawak Barisan Nasional as the Sarawak State Government.

I even said that the goal of denying Adenan two-thirds state assembly majority would be quite impossible, as it would mean the Opposition collectively electing at least 28 State Assembly seats in Sarawak. Continue reading “Johor should take over the baton from Sarawak to be the vanguard for political change in Malaysia”

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RM50 billion 1MDB scandal is equivalent to 100 years of Kelantan’s annual state budget

The Kelantan Amanah Chairman, Datuk Wan Abdul Rahim Wan Abdullah tells me that the annual budget for the Kelantan state is about RM500 million a year.

This would mean that the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal is equivalent to 100 years of Kelantan’s annual state budget – an indication of the enormity and magnitude of the nation’s first global financial scandal and why it is imperative that the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who is also the Finance Minister should accept immediate and full responsibility and accountability for the worst case of public governance in almost six decades of the nation’s history.

The 1MDB global scandal would be a leading issue in the Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary by-elections, with the nomination date fixed for June 5 and polling on June 18.

PAS contested on behalf of Pakatan Rakyat in both constituencies in the 13th GE in May 2013, with the PAS candidate losing by 399 votes in Sungai Besasr and 1,082 votes in Kuala Kangsar.

PAS candidates in the by-election in Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar will not get more votes in either constituency in the 2013 general elections, as their votes can only be lower, as PAS has alienated considerable segment of voters in both constituencies and is no more a Pakatan Rakyat component party. Continue reading “RM50 billion 1MDB scandal is equivalent to 100 years of Kelantan’s annual state budget”

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Why is Najib absconding to UK next week when he should be in Parliament to give full and satisfactory accounting on the exploding 1MDB global financial scandal?

It has been reported that the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak will be making a “working visit” to the United Kingdom from Sunday to May 18 to promote investment between the two countries.

It would appear that Najib’s overseas itinerary had been planned to enable him to avoid parliamentary responsibility and accountability with Parliament scheduled to reconvene on Monday.

Why is Najib absconding to UK when he should be in Parliament to give full and satisfactory accounting on the exploding 1MDB global financial scandal?

Why is Najib going away from the country when he should have given top priority to his attendance of Parliament among all his Prime Ministerial duties especially with the 1MDB scandal assuming such an explosive dimension? Continue reading “Why is Najib absconding to UK next week when he should be in Parliament to give full and satisfactory accounting on the exploding 1MDB global financial scandal?”

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Challenge of Pakatan Harapan is to convince all voters that the victims of the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal are the 30 million Malaysians as corruption is not a victimless crime

The challenge of Pakatan Harapan is to convince all voters that the victims of the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal are the 30 million Malaysians as corruption is not a victimless crime.

In normal crimes like theft, robbery or murder, it is easy to know the victims but corruption seems to be a remote and distant matter of little or no concern to the public, especially as there appears to be no victims.

This is however the greatest fallacy of all – that corruption is a victimless crime. Continue reading “Challenge of Pakatan Harapan is to convince all voters that the victims of the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal are the 30 million Malaysians as corruption is not a victimless crime”

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Terengganu is a peculiar state where Opposition Assemblymen help to prop up the UMNO Mentri Besar to defeat a no-confidence motion in the State Assembly from an UMNO Assemblyman

Marang is the 127th parliamentary constituency I am visiting since my six-month suspension from Parliament for wanting the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak to answer two simple questions about the twin global corruption scandals which had been haunting and hounding him for over a year – where the astronomical sums of money running into billions of ringgit in the twin mega scandals come from and where the monies have gone to.

I am returning to Parliament on Monday but these two simple questions about Najib’s RM50 billion 1MDB scandal and RM4.2 billion “donation” scandals are as elusive as ever, although the twin mega scandals have merged into one gargantuan global scandal spanning over a dozen countries.

The Global Anti-Corruption Summit in London yesterday has among its objeectives to:

* expose corruption so there is nowhere to hide;

* punish the perpetrators and support those affected by corruption; and

* drive out the culture of corruption wherever it exists.

Will Najib as Prime Minister of Malaysia declare full support for these three objectives of the Global Anti-Corruption Summit in London, or is the Malaysian Government terribly frightened of these triple goals. Continue reading “Terengganu is a peculiar state where Opposition Assemblymen help to prop up the UMNO Mentri Besar to defeat a no-confidence motion in the State Assembly from an UMNO Assemblyman”

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Four parliamentary measures to redeem national honour and reputation in the handling of Malaysia’s first global scandal – RM50 billion 1MDB scandal

Kuala Terengganu is the 126th parliamentary constituency that I am visiting in my “Pantang Undur – Berani Kerana Benar” nation-wide tour since my six-month suspension from Parliament in October last year for demanding two simple answers from the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak with regard to this twin mega scandals which have put Malaysia among the top 10 countries infamous for global corruption – where the monies for the RM50 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” scandals came from and where the monies have gone to.

I will return to Parliament when it reconvenes on Monday 16th May, but six months after my suspension from Parliament, the two questions of “Where the monies came from and where the monies have gone to” have still to be answered, and have writ even larger, with major developments in Najib’s twin mega financial scandals confirming Malaysia as home to one of the great global corruptions of the time.

In fact, never before had Malaysia seen a local scandal taken such global dimension as to be almost in frequent international limelight, sometimes for days at a stretch, in the past year or more, and if anyone googles “1MDB scandal”, there would be more than half a million returns!

This is not to the credit or honour of Malaysia – but to our great national shame and humiliation. Continue reading “Four parliamentary measures to redeem national honour and reputation in the handling of Malaysia’s first global scandal – RM50 billion 1MDB scandal”

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Malaysian Leader Najib’s Stepson Allegedly Funded U.S. Property Deals With 1MDB Money

By BRADLEY HOPE and TOM WRIGHT
Wall Street Journal
May 11, 2016

At least $50 million allegedly diverted from state investment fund was spent on luxury real estate in the U.S.

At least $50 million allegedly diverted from a state investment fund in Malaysia was spent on luxury properties in New York and Los Angeles by the stepson of the Malaysian prime minister, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and people familiar with the matter.

Riza Aziz, a film producer and stepson of Malaysian leader Najib Razak, used money that originated from the 1Malaysia Development Bhd. fund to acquire a 7,700-square-foot, $33.5 million duplex in the Park Laurel condominium tower overlooking New York’s Central Park, the documents and people said.

Mr. Aziz also used money originating from 1MDB to buy an 11,000-square-foot walled mansion in Beverly Hills with a 120-foot-long pool for more than $17.5 million, the documents and people said.

The financing of those acquisitions is under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is conducting a wide-ranging inquiry into alleged misappropriation of billions of dollars from 1MDB, according to people familiar with the probe. 1MDB was set up in 2009 to benefit the Malaysian people. Continue reading “Malaysian Leader Najib’s Stepson Allegedly Funded U.S. Property Deals With 1MDB Money”

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S’wak’s Tasik Biru battle DAP’s litmus test of conscience

Mordi Bimol
Malaysiakini
12th May 2016

COMMENT On the nomination day for the Sarawak state election on April 25, 2016, Lim Kit Siang, who was present at the Tasik Biru seat nomination centre, described the battle in Tasik Biru between Henry Jinep of the BN and I, as the litmus test for DAP in the Dayak majority seat.

Tasik Biru is a constituency that comprises 68 percent Dayak, 26 percent Chinese and six percent Malay Melanau. BN eventually won with a majority of 1,288 votes, garnering 6,922 votes (55 percent) against the DAP’s 5,634 votes (45 percent).

Although we lost the seat in a straight fight with BN-SPDP, we made significant inroads in this Dayak majority seat.

In the 13th general election, I contested for the parliamentary seat of Mas Gading, which comprises two state assembly seats – Tasik Biru and Opar – and garnered 5,293 votes.

In this state election, we obtained more votes (5,634) in just one state assembly seat alone. At the micro-level, we won in four out of 20 Dayak villages, with one of them as high as 70 percent. We averaged at 40 percent votes for Dayak localities. Such an achievement was unimaginable three years ago.

We managed to make significant inroads into the Bidayuh heartland despite BN’s systematic pouring of cash handouts on the last day and use of fear tactics – the villagers were told that the government would cut their water, electricity and welfare aid if BN were to lose the seat! Continue reading “S’wak’s Tasik Biru battle DAP’s litmus test of conscience”

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The victims of RM50 billion 1MDB scandal are the 30 million Malaysians as “corruption is not a victimless crime”

Malaysia and the Malaysian Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak should be playing a leading role in the historic Anti-Corruption Summit in London today hosted by the United Kingdom Government, as this is the second important global anti-corruption conference held after the 16th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) in Putrajaya last September with the theme of “Ending Impunity: People, Integrity and Action”.

Unfortunately Najib dodged and ducked the 16th IACC which was supposed to be the high-water mark of his six-year anti-corruption campaign and show-case him as one of the exemplary global leaders spearheading a transformation programme with anti-corruption as one of its core objectives.

When Najib’s keynote address for the conference hosted by the Malaysian government was cancelled at the last-minute, and Najib’s photograph and biography quietly and ignominiously removed from the conference website, the 30 million Malaysians had to endure a humiliating opening speech delivered by Transparency International Chair José Ugaz who told about 1,000 delegates from all over the world that the measures taken by the Najib government in connection with the 1MDB financial scandal “are not the actions of a government that is fighting corruption.”

Jose Ugaz said: “No one can be in Malaysia and not be aware of the corruption allegations of recent months and how damaging they are to the country. There is a corruption crisis here.

“We want to see more progress but that cannot happen while there are unanswered questions about the $700m that made its way into the prime minister’s personal bank account.

“There are two questions that need to be answered: Who paid the money and why? Where did it go?

“One man could answer those questions.”

Eight month forward, these two simple questions about Najib’s RM50 billion 1MDB and RM4.2 billion “donation” twin mega scandals (only cited as RM42 billion and RM2.6 billion respectively during the 16th ICAC) are not only no nearer to answer, but have been swarmed by more serious issues about integrity, accountability and good governance. Continue reading “The victims of RM50 billion 1MDB scandal are the 30 million Malaysians as “corruption is not a victimless crime””

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Abu Dhabi’s IPIC demands more Malaysia compensation as debt row deepens

KUALA LUMPUR/HONG KONG | BY JOSEPH SIPALAN AND UMESH DESAI
Reuters
Wed May 11, 2016

Disputes between Abu Dhabi state-owned International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC) and the troubled Malaysian state investment fund 1MDB intensified on Wednesday, with IPIC saying there was a fresh default by 1MDB.

IPIC claimed that 1MDB and the Malaysian government now owe it more than $1.2 billion after a complex series of agreements between the two former partners went sour.

The latest turn came on Wednesday, when IPIC [INTPV.UL], said it had to stump up a $52.4 million coupon payment after 1MDB defaulted on $1.75 billion on bonds due in 2022.

1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) said it had “more than sufficient” funds to make the interest payments on that bond and another $1.75 billion declared in default in April, but did not due to its dispute with IPIC.

1MDB has been locked in a dispute over its obligations to IPIC under a debt restructuring agreement reached in June. Continue reading “Abu Dhabi’s IPIC demands more Malaysia compensation as debt row deepens”