Parliament should set up a Parliamentary Select Committee on the 1MDB scandal to specifically look into three issues — the Apandi, IPIC-Aabar, and the Goldman Sachs settlements, and whether they should be re-opened.
Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has said he was “mystified” by Putrajaya’s decision not to reveal the details of the settlement with former attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali overcompensation for the latter’s dismissal from his post.
As Mahathir has pointed out, Apandi, the former AG under Najib Abdul Razak’s government, made his demand publicly. He even named the amount of RM2.23 million.
Mahathir said “Yet the compensation the government made is a secret. Why? I have reason to find out why because I do not think he deserves to be compensated at all.”
On Feb 14, Azalina said in a written parliamentary reply to the DAP MP for Ipoh Barat M Kulasegaran that the matter has been put under the Official Secrets Act 1972, in accordance with the agreement that the terms of the settlement be kept secret.
The Parliamentary Select Committee should hold a public hearing and call up Mahathir Mohamad as he had said Apandi did not deserve to be compensated at all.
Author of the book “1MDB: The Scandal that Brought Down a Government” and commentator P. Gunasegaram estimates that the government’s US$1.8 billion (RM8 billion) settlement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over two UAE companies International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and its subsidiary Aabar Investments PJS with 1MDB represents a US$3.98 billion (RM18 billion) shortfall compared to the amount of US$5.78 billion (RM26 billion) that former attorney-general Tommy Thomas was disputing.
Thirdly, the former second finance minister and MP for Titiwangsa, Johari Abdul Ghani has raised the controversial Goldman Sachs settlement reached with the Malaysian government over 1MDB in July 2020 when Muhyiddin Yassin was prime minister.
Parliament has a duty to establish through a thorough and impartial investigation whether there is any hanky-panky in the Goldman Sachs deal.
The relevant Ministers and principal officers of the Pakatan Harapan Government and the Muhyiddin Yassin governments should be subpoenaed by the Parliamentary Select Committee on 1MDB scandal so that the PSC can submit a true and full report of the Goldman Sachs settlement to the nation.
(Media Statement by DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang in Penang on Thursday, 9th March 2023)
