— Spencer Gan
The Malaysian Insider
Feb 11, 2012
FEB 11 — Dear Mr Prime Minister,
I need clarification. Two days ago, you announced that PNB and Khazanah Nasional will be divesting some of its businesses to bumiputera firms.
There was also the usual talk of open tenders and how qualified bumi firms will be considered. I am not going to bother about this talk of open tenders because it will snow in Malaysia before there is a level playing field in business.
What concerns me is this drive to ask Khazanah Nasional to divest its stake in non-core businesses to bumi firms. I thought Khazanah was the sovereign wealth fund of the NATION. And I thought that meant that Khazanah is the custodian of wealth belonging to ALL Malaysians.
If that is the case, then Khazanah Nasional should be divesting its non-core businesses to qualified Malaysian businesses.
I understand that this being the election year, there is a need to placate powerful Malay business interests but please don’t use funds or hijack the interests of all Malaysians for narrow political gains.
All this talk of economic liberalisation will not amount to much if the administration keeps not matching its words with deeds.
I share the concerns expressed by MPs that there is a return to the Mahathir days when plum contracts and projects was given to certain Malay business figures. Well, we know what happened to them: they are all personally filthy rich but their business entities crashed.
If the government is taking the position that wealth and assets belonging to all Malaysians are going to be hijacked for narrow Malay interests, then my belief is that we have a legitimate reason to stop paying taxes and other payments. Alternatively, we should boycott all entities owned by Khazanah Nasional.
Yes, to spreading economic wealth to all. No, to making a few Malay cronies and their political patrons rich.
#1 by k1980 on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 10:34 am
Spreading economic wealth to all? Take a look at the photos below and quit dreaming!
http://zorro-zorro-unmasked.blogspot.com/2012/02/of-cattle-and-club.html
#2 by Godfather on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 10:48 am
They give you RM500 and then they let Rosie spend RM 300,000 in one day. That’s their definition of wealth distribution.
#3 by yhsiew on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 10:57 am
When did BN ever treat public funds as funds owned by the rakyat? The moment they lay hands on the funds they will treat them as party-funds.
#4 by Bigjoe on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 11:13 am
AND they claim that ASLI report by Dr. Lim Teck Ghee was wrong – that bumi equity has been reached. Dr. Lim was generous to NOT say that Khazanah is NOT bumi equity..
#5 by k1980 on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 11:19 am
http://rapidshare.com/files/3241207603/C0smopolitanUSA_2012-03.softarchive.net.pdf
Compile such pictures and project them onto screens during 13GE Ceramahs under the heading “Thanks to 55 Years of umno”. Guarantee PR will get 3/4 majority in Parliament
#6 by Cinapek on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 11:22 am
“… I thought Khazanah was the sovereign wealth fund of the NATION. ”
Yes, I believed that was also the argument put forth by Govt leaders when they castigated Dr Lim Teck Ghee when he claimed that bumi equity had exceeded the 30% target when he included Khazanah’s equity holdings of GLCs. It looks like Dr Lim was right all along and the UMNO leaders had lied as usual when it suited them.
Pardon my layman’s knowledge but I thought Khazanah’s initial seed capital had come from the Govt? If this is the case, then Khazanah and all its assets should belong to the people of Malaysia and not just the bumis. Unless of course, the non bumis are not considered as citizens and are pendatangs. If at all Khazanah wants to divest the non core business and also wants to make sure that bumis retain their fair share, then they should offer these businesses to organizations with the minimum 30% bumi equity. And these 30% should be spread out and not from one single bumi crony.
Lurking at the back of my mind is the suspicion that probably this entire exercise is to make sure certain bumi interest are taken care of in case BN loses GE13.
#7 by k1980 on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 11:23 am
These photos are taken at Kg. Orang Asli Hulu Kemensah, less than 10 km from Kuala Lumpur.
The entrance to the village. The few “brick” houses at the front are misleading – they do not tell you the real story of the poverty in the village. Once you have passed the few “brick” houses in the front, the rest of the houses are like these—-
http://planetofthemonyets.blogspot.com/2009/08/so-near-kl-yet-so-poor.html
#8 by sotong on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 11:48 am
It has always been to protect the ” disadvantage ” to gain support and to enrich a few.
They don’t care of further damaging consequences to the economy, as long as they are re-elected!
#9 by donplaypuks on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 12:09 pm
“I thought Khazanah was the sovereign wealth fund of the NATION..”
There is no need to think. Khazanah means National Treasury. Its capital came from ALL taxpayer’s money and so its investments belong to ALL Malaysians and NOT Bumis alone.
All Khazanah’s investments are core since it it is not a company but more like an investment fund, which also provides capital for incubating strategic projects.
By all means divest, but do it by open tender and open it to ALL Malaysians. Restricting it to ONLY Bumis will be a betrayal of other citizens.
PNB is another kettle of fish. Let them what they wish with it for Bumis.
Najib, you are supposed to be PM of all Malaysians, not only of UMNO members, Malays and Bumis.
dpp
we are all of 1 Race, the Human Race
#10 by cskok8 on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 12:30 pm
I think what Ah Jib Gor wants to do is “sell” profitable companies to his cronies at giveaway prices and keep loss making ones for our future. As somebody once put it, “privatise profits and nationalise losses”
#11 by Godfather on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 1:14 pm
What’s the difference between this episode and the granting of billions of grants and soft loans to crony companies 100 pct owned by UMNOputras ? Oh, I forgot, they do give grants and soft loans to BN minority parties – like crumbs falling off the UMNO table.
#12 by -e- on Saturday, 11 February 2012 - 1:53 pm
國際學校准100%收本地學生 (International schools allow to take 100% local students)
http://www.guangming.com.my/node/126518
i am not sure if parents are happy of such policy change and will vote bn comes ge13.
allowing private schools to take local students does not answer…
1. the poor quality of national schools. this is apparent failure of the ministry of education!
2. why parents need to pay for expensive fees for these private schools when they have already paid taxes and this taxes should have been used for providing quality national education.
3. the education gap between these ‘elite’ schools and national schools will only worsen.
wks, when are uec be ‘accepted’ (in your word) to local universities? when? give us a date!
wks, when are you going to come to puchong to tell the people what are you doing for the new school application?
wks, denial of problems is no excuse. if both of you and your boss cannot do the job well, both of you should resign!
how could such an important aspect of the country lands on the hands of these incompetent people?
#13 by vsp on Sunday, 12 February 2012 - 1:16 pm
“Bumi” means UMNO Malays and UMNO ministers. Don’t expect anything to go to the orang asli.
#14 by isahbiazhar on Monday, 13 February 2012 - 4:20 pm
Perhaps Najib could answer that question.Any contribution to the wealth of the nation by the Chinese and the Indians does not matter.Najib is planning to dish out those companies to his cronies as what Mahathir did.History is being repeated but this time the coming election will show that history in the future will not be repeated!
#15 by ktteokt on Thursday, 16 February 2012 - 12:08 pm
And tell me if MARA belongs EXCLUSIVELY to the Malays when the name itself is an abbreviation for MAJLIS AMANAH RAKYAT! Does the Rakyat of Malaysia consist only of the MALAYS???????