Port Klang Free Zone sinks deeper into money woes

Malaysia port project sinks deeper into money woes – News Wires – CNBC.com

A scandal-plagued port project that has embarrassed the Malaysian government amid accusations of mismanagement is in worse financial trouble than thought, according to an auditor’s report released Thursday.

The Port Klang Free Zone — a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) industrial and trading hub that opened in November 2006 — has been a publicity nightmare for the government over the past two years after Malaysia’s main port authority incurred massive cost overruns to develop the project.

The government approved a loan in 2007 to rescue the Port Klang Authority from debts exceeding $1 billion, raising opposition allegations of corruption and a lack of transparency in government-linked projects.

The port authority might have problems paying the loan installments, which would result in additional interest and send the project’s bill soaring to 12.5 billion ringgit ($3.5 billion), according to a report by accountancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers, which was appointed in October to audit the project.

The project had originally been targeted to cost 1.8 billion ringgit, but the figure ballooned to 4.6 billion ringgit by the time it was ready to open, officials previously said.

The auditor’s report listed a wide range of missteps, saying there was “a general lack of board oversight and governance.” It also noted there could be “potential conflicts of interest” in company officials involved in land acquisitions for the project.

Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat had promised Wednesday that the government would act on the report and take action against anyone involved in wrongdoing.

Dozens of companies involved in manufacturing, trading and logistics have set up shop at the Klang zone. It is targeted mainly at investors from the Middle East, China, Japan and India.

Government bailouts of prominent companies occurred regularly in the 1990s, damaging public confidence in big state projects. The opposition blamed the bailouts on corruption and undisciplined spending.

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Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy was happy with progress

The Port Klang Free Zone scandal

Rabble rouser Khairy inciting Penanti voters not to vote

Sun2Surf

A police report against Khairy was to be lodged at 3.30pm today at the Kubang Semang Police Station by PKR Youth Chief Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akim. However, Shamsul told reporters at the police station later that the PKR Youth decided to give Khairy 24 hours to retract his alleged statement.

“We would also want to clarify the accuracy of the news report first,” he said.

Earlier, PKR Information chief Latheefa Koya said the alleged statement would constitute an offence under Section 4(A) of the Election Act, as it promotes ill-will, discontent or hostility to induce voters to refrain from voting.

If convicted, the offender can be jailed up to five years or fined not more than RM10,000 or both.

“This is statement made goes against democracy,” she said, adding that the police and Election Commission should investigate the matter.

Malay daily Sinar Hariam had reported Khairy made the statement on Thursday (May28).

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Rabble rouser Khairy

Police action increasingly high-handed and one-sided

Malaysian opposition leader questioned by police | World | Reuters

“Police action has become increasing high-handed and one-sided … this is not the way to go,” said Cynthia Gabriel from Voice of the Malaysian People human rights group.

“The government must recognise that it would not augur well for them to charge people under the Sedition Act or other laws that are draconian in nature,” Gabriel added.

Read:

Malaysian police raid opposition headquarters without warrant

Barisan Nasional – same old, same rot

Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (mentioned in the PKFZ report) wants to sue

Developer to sue over ‘negative’ report

Port Klang Free Zone turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd will sue the Port Klang Authority (PKA) or audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, or both, over the PKFZ report.

Its group deputy CEO Datuk Faizal Abdullah said the report which was made public on Thursday was “not done in good faith” and Kuala Dimensi had no choice but to defend itself.

“I have told the legal team to proceed. They are drafting the lawsuit, but I do not know who it will be directed at yet. We have just finished reading the report, so the lawsuit will be either against the PKA or PwC, or even both,” he said yesterday.

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Kapar Umno Youth Chief MPK Councillor Faizal Abdullah previously resigned because he too built a house without approval from MPK

Port Klang Free Zone had problems since 2003

The Port Klang scandal

Port Klang Free Zone report reveals weak managment

Report reveals weak project management

The report on the Port Klang Free Zone highlighted 20 issues concerning the project’s management and governance by the Port Klang Authority.

Among the issues which were revealed by the points were weak project management, cost overruns and conflicts of interests.

Among the issues were:

/> PKA’s failure to alert the Cabinet in a timely manner of its inability to finance the project from its internal funds following an audit report by the Auditor-General in 2004 that noted that PKA did not have sufficient funds to finance the project;

/> PKA’s failure to seek the advice of the Attorney-General while not complying with certain Finance Ministry regulations;

/> Potential conflicts of interests arising from the involvement of parties who had prior association with either the land used to develop PKFZ or the turnkey developer, Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB);

/> Awarding of the PKFZ development contract to KDSB before a project masterplan was finalised;

/> PKA’s projections that it would be in a cumulative cash deficit position in 2012 and would not be able to repay the Finance Ministry soft loan instalments on time;

/> PKFZ having a low occupancy rate of 14% which is not generating sufficient revenue to cover its operating expenses.

/> PKFZ Sdn Bhd incurring losses since its incorporation and having negative shareholder’s funds as at Sept 30 last year.

/> The possible breach of Treasury regulations when the Transport Ministry issued letters of support which could be construed as a guarantee that PKA would meet its obligations on a full and timely basis. Such letters should have been approved by the Finance Ministry.

The report was made public at a press conference by PKA chairman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng at his office in Port Klang yesterday.

Lee however refused to field any questions on the details of the report and repeatedly asked reporters to view Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat’s blog for further information.

He said the report would be available online at www.pka-report.com for a period of two weeks while the appendices to the report would be available for public viewing during office hours at PKA at Jalan Pelabuhan, Port Klang until June 10.

“The appendices could not be released like the report due to its voluminous nature,” he said.

Read:

Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy was happy with progress

The Port
Klang Free Zone scandal

Port Klang Free Zone report names 4 politicians (all Barisan Nasional)

Report names four politicians

Four politicians are among those named in the report on the Port Klang Free Zone, including two for possibly having conflict of interest in their dealings with the project.

The four were Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung, Sementa assemblyman Datuk Abdul Rahman Palil, Backbenchers Club president Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing and Federal Territory Umno treasurer Datuk Seri Azim Zabidi.

Chor was the Port Klang Authority (PKA) chairman from April 2007 to March 2008 while Abdul Rahman was a board member of the authority from 1997 to 2003.

The report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) raised the question whether there was a possibility of a conflict of interests because Chor had also served as Wijaya Baru Global Berhad (WBGB) non-executive deputy chairman from April 2004 till July 2007.

WBGB is the parent company of Wijaya Baru Sdn Bhd (WBSB), the main contractor for PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd.

“Minutes of the (PKA) board did not indicate that Chor either declared his previous involvement in WBGB to the (PKA) board nor withdrew himself from deliberations,” the PWC report said.

Chor is currently Alor Setar MP and was deputy home minister until April this year before he was moved to the Finance Ministry.

On Abdul Rahman, the report noted that he was also the president of Koperasi Pembangunan Pulau Lumut Bhd, the original landowners of PKFZ project site.

“At one Port Klang Authority board meeting, Abdul Rahman declared his position as the president of the co-operative and queried the proposal for compulsory acquisition of the land over direct purchase.

“Given that compulsory acquisition would have benefited PKA, the rationale for Abdul Rahman raising the query is unclear,” the report stated.

Abdul Rahman was a Selangor state executive council member under the Barisan Nasional government.

Both Chor and Abdul Rahman could not be contacted for comment.

As for Tiong, the PWC report named him as a 32% shareholder of WBGB, which in turn has a 45% stake in WBSB, the main contractor to the turnkey developer, Kuala Dimensi.

Tiong is also 70% shareholder of Wijaya Baru Holdings Sdn Bhd, which is the sole proprietor of Kuala Dimensi.

Azim, the former Umno treasurer-general, was only named once in the report. He was identified as a director of Kuala Dimensi. He was appointed on July 18, 2003.

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The Port Klang Free Zone scandal

Transcript of Aminah CD – conspiracy within PKR ?

Transcript of the Aminah CD

An audio recording purportedly a conversation between Independent candidate Aminah Abdullah and PKR supreme council member Cheah Kah Peng and Peter Lim Eng Nam, revealed there were mentions of a Deputy Chief Minister 1’s post and council president’s post being offered.

However, the post of DCM I was offered if the PKR candidate Mansor Othman was disqualified on nomination Day.

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Malaysian politicians – mostly no shame. no morals, no ethics

Malaysian police raid opposition headquarters without warrant

The Canadian Press: Malaysia police raid opposition headquarters

Police raided a Malaysian opposition party’s headquarters to search for seditious material, sparking accusations Sunday of a crackdown on political dissent.

The hourlong search late Saturday marked the first time police had raided the Democratic Action party’s main office in its 42-year history, said the party’s parliamentary chief, Lim Kit Siang. Plainclothes policemen entered the office without a search warrant and seized a computer and DVDs, he said.

The move comes amid an increasingly acrimonious battle for control of northern Perak state, which the governing National Front coalition wrested from a three-party opposition alliance in February. The struggle has turned into an emotional fight between opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is struggling to revive the National Front’s slumping popularity.

District police chief Abdul Jalil Hasan told the national Bernama news agency the confiscated computer was believed to have been used to publish seditious pamphlets handed out during opposition demonstrations against the coalition’s takeover of Perak.

Anwar called the raid “an insult to the Constitution and the rule of law.”

Teresa Kok, another opposition official, said it was a “scare tactic” to deter opposition demonstrations. Police have arrested dozens of people who took part in such protests in recent weeks, though most were eventually freed without any immediate charges.

The ruling coalition took over Perak after three state legislators left Anwar’s alliance, causing it to lose the majority in the state legislature that it obtained in elections last year. It raised allegations the National Front had orchestrated the defections through underhanded means.

On Friday, the Court of Appeals struck down an earlier ruling that declared the National Front’s takeover of Perak unconstitutional.

The opposition weakened the National Front’s majority in Parliament and won five of Malaysia’s 13 states, including Perak, during last year’s elections amid mounting public complaints over how the government was tackling problems such as corruption, racial tension and economic worries.

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Barisan Nasional – same old, same rot

Barisan Nasional – same old, same rot

Badawism

And the birth of the alternative media platform, the sheer disgust at the excesses of the ruling coalition and a more educated population unwilling to swallow officialspeak as the truth had more to do with free flow of ideas and open debate than the fifth PM.

If Abdullah was sincere about bringing meaningful change, he would not have dithered over abolishing or at least overhauling the Internal Security Act (ISA).

Opposition from Umno ministers in Cabinet saw him put the review on the backburner, a familiar position every time his party objected to change.

If Abdullah was sincere about bringing meaningful change, he would have done away with the archaic law that requires newspaper to obtain a publishing licence from the Home Ministry.

He did not. How can the man who is credited with opening democratic space leave in place the legislation that continues to manacle the ability of the media to report without fear?

If Abdullah was sincere about making the judiciary credible in the eyes of the public, he would not have selected loyal Umno servant Tan Sri Zaki Tun Azmi as the Chief Justice.

Malaysia must be one of the few countries where the top judge used to serve as the legal adviser and chairman of the disciplinary board of the ruling party. He could have gone for someone untainted with political affiliation but that would have been too much of a risk for a man whose first loyalty was to his party.

So he selected a safe choice – a safe choice by his party’s standards.

If Abdullah was sincere about improving the sullied image of Malaysia’s institutions, he would have opted for real change rather that the cosmetic variety.

Remember the Royal Commission of the Police Force and the Royal Commission on the V K Lingam video clip.

When his administration pushed for the setting up of the two commissions, he was feted as a leader who was unwilling to sweep dirt under the carpet, a man genuinely interested in holding accountable those who tarred the reputation of the police and judiciary.

Prominent members of Malaysian society were appointed to the two commissions, reports and recommendations were made.

But there has been little substantial change. The original independent police complaints tribunal proposal is in the KIV tray somewhere in the Home Ministry and the half-hearted attempt to take action against those named in the Lingam judge-fixing scam has all but petered out.

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Malaysians disgusted with the excesses of Barisan Nasional

Barisan Nasional’s racial tactics make 1Malaysia a hollow slogan

Anwar: Najib’s 1 Malaysia marred by racial tactics

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last night blasted its attempt to divide the opposition pact through racial tactics, saying it reduced the ruling coalition’s 1 Malaysia to nothing but cheap hollow slogans.

Speaking to some 2,500 Pakatan Rakyat (PR) supporters at a ceramah here, the de facto PKR leader said the BN had again trumped up the racial card, calling him a traitor to the Malays by supporting a Chinese DAP govermment in Penang.

Anwar claimed this was being done through the BN-controlled mass media.
“They say I am a traitor to the Malays, that I suppport a Chinese
leader (Penang DAP chief minister Lim Guan Eng).

“But let me say this, when BN controlled Penang, Umno had made Gerakan leader Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon as chief minister. Is Tsu Koon’s name Ahmad Tsu Koon?,” charged Anwar.

Anwar then pointed to the constitutional crisis in Perak claiming that BN had also tried to use race as a way to undermine the leadership of ousted mentri besar Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin.

“BN had played the race game by saying Nizar had given land to the Chinese community there. I would say this in front of all the Malays present here today, I applaud and defend Nizar’s move.

“There is nothing wrong with helping and we must help those in need regardless of their race. This shows Pakatan do not look to help based on race. But what about the BN? It’s OK for them to give land to rich Chinese?” Anwar told the crowd.

Voters however are getting smarter, remarked the PKR leader, and can no longer be fooled by the racial tactics of the ruling coalition.

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Shocking 1Malaysia

Barisan Nasional turning to courts to stay in power ?