Dr Mahathir tells foreign governments to make 1MDB probe public ! So ?

UAE's English daily The National reported as below. 

Razak critic urges 1MDB findings be publicised

The National staff

April 20, 2016 Updated: April 21, 2016 03:56 PM

A leading critic of Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak said corruption had reached levels never seen before in the country and urged foreign governments linked to the controversy surrounding a state investment fund to make their findings public.

1MDB, whose advisory board is chaired by Mr Razak, is under investigation in at least five countries including Switzerland and the US over allegations of money laundering and embezzlement.

Dr Mahathir Mohamad, at one time the country’s longest-serving prime minister, said the investigations into the 1MDB fund were not just a problem for Malaysia.

“Being diplomatic isn’t going to help Malaysia or anyone else," he said on the sidelines of the International Conference on Leadership, Innovation and Entrepreneurship organised by the Canadian University Dubai. “They must recognise action needs to be taken and do what is necessary."

Dr Mohamad, who was in his post between 1981 and 2003, said the scandal around the Malaysian fund threatened the Asian nation’s international reputation and hurt foreign direct investment.

“All inquiries should eventually be made public because inquiries that are kept secret are of no use to anyone," he said.

“Eventually things will have to be revealed."

Last week, Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) said neither itself nor its Aabar unit had any connection to a firm incorporated in the British Virgin Islands that was named in a report into the controversy surrounding the Malaysian fund.

In May 2015, Ipic had agreed to provide the Malaysian fund US$1 billion to meet some of its liabilities in exchange for assets while at the same time taking on interest payments on about $3.5bn in debt.

But the Abu Dhabi fund now says 1MDB is in default on the terms of the agreement. - The National 

I read the above news report more than once, just to allay my concerns that there were pleas and demands for foreign interference in the domestic affairs of Malaysia. 

In fact I read it more than twice, but there were none. The report is there for you to read and interpret but I'm a little amused by the thinly veiled statement from a morally bankrupt politician. 

A cheap statement from a scandal ridden politician who stands accused for a series of crimes in the court of public opinion, but it reveals desperation. 

For someone who has confessed to having received billions of ringgit in personal donations from a foreigner, the 'foreign interference' cry is laughable. 

Channelling billions of ringgit into your personal account from a foreign donor, who 'simply gave it and was not expecting anything in return', would make a good fairytale script. Thank you! We don't buy such bullshit. 

Now, are we Malaysians not concerned about international criminal investigations on 1MDB relating to suspected money laundering and embezzlement ? 

Billions of ringgit are missing and 1MDB's Arul Kanda Kandasamy says it could be fraud. What has 1MDB done to recover the lost billions if at all it was fraud? 

Dear Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib, it has been said again and again that you must be responsible for the failed, scandal ridden 1Malaysia Development Berhad - 1MDB. There are no two ways about it. If it was indeed a scam, you allowed it. 

Even if you are convinced that you have been conned by Jho Low the Penang khia, you still have to stand up and explain. How he did do it? 

Don't run around because this is about a sovereign nation whose interests and livelihood are being compromised due to a host of reasons especially international humiliation for corruption and mounting foreign debts. 

This is not your family business. 

The escalating cost of living in both rural and urban areas are at unhealthy levels.  

"corruption had reached levels never seen before in the country and urged foreign governments linked to the controversy surrounding a state investment fund to make their findings public" - Dr Mahathir said in Dubai.

Dr Mahathir also urged foreign governments to make their investigations public. - "urged foreign governments linked to the controversy surrounding a state investment fund to make their findings public"

Asking investigators and investigating authorities to make their findings public is a crime? 

We cannot tolerate false, unfounded allegations that are part of a conspiracy to topple a democratically elected government. Remember that. Truth matters.

Remember that asking the resignation of a sitting prime minister is not a crime. Otherwise how did Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (now Tun) step aside to allow Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak to take over? 

We have a working moral compass in this country, I'm sure. 

The prime minister must come clean. Begin with the money in the kitty.  

Follow up by suing The Wall Street Journal for proof  to restore Malaysia's badly bruised image and reputation. 

You can follow in Nazir Razak's footsteps and step aside, if you are still able to do that. The window is almost shut. The choice is still yours.

Living in denial cannot go on forever. 

As Dr Mahathir puts it, eventually things will have to be revealed. 

Hope you would come to your senses fast and not be fooled by bootlickers who are hell bent on keeping you within the bubble, and continue destroying yourself in the pretext of fighting a political battle. 

Crime is no politics. 

“When people tell a lie about something, they have to make up a bunch of lies to go with the first one. ‘Mythomania’ is the word for it.” ― Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

p/s 

1MDB bukan cerita rekaan Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Kenyataan hutang dan penggadaian tanah serta maruah dek kerana 1MDB terpampang didepan mata. Bukankah kita celik? 

Orang lain kehadapan, kita terkangkang gali lubang. Hutang keliling pinggang. 

Dubai a perfect example of visionary leadership

Shamelessly famous

Above are copies of the Jan 15 edition of The National newspaper from UAE. A Malaysian who had to hang his head low among friends there snapped the news article and sent it back home. 

Gathered in UAE for an exclusive think tank on world economy, this Javanese banker from Selangor relates that many of the movers and shakers were keen to understand as to how Malaysians have managed to keep rule of law at bay while continuing to shower a scandal ridden politician with power. 

"Some thought Malaysia was an absolute monarchy ruled by a flamboyant couple," he chuckled before ending the conversation with 'Saya malu lah bro!

Maybe its not too late to wish readers a Happy New Year. It is 2016 and Malaysia continues to make headlines all over the world. In this new year and the year before Malaysia is famous for all the wrong reasons. 

Even within Asean, everybody is surprised at our sudden slide in the anti-corruption index. Corruption has now become the No 1 enemy of the state. 

We are famous for the wrong reasons and it is certainly not mere perception, as some would like to make us believe.

Is Jho Low the 'a financier linked to the prime minister of Malaysia' mentioned in the Bloomberg's report?

Dear Mohd Najib Bin Tun Abdul Razak, you better take legal action against Bloomberg (if the report is not true) because you are repeatedly tarnishing the image of this beloved nation. You are ruining our good name because you appear to be a different type prime minister than your illustrious father the late Tun Abdul Razak. 

You tak malu ker ? Kami malu bila orang luar mentertawakan negara ini.

Below is the full report as dispatched by Bloomberg

Luxury-Home Market Seen Threatened by Scrutiny in NYC, Miami

For luxury-home developers and brokers in Miami and Manhattan who are already contending with slumping prices and slowing demand, the U.S. government’s decision to start scrutinizing all-cash buyers was more bad news.

The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network said Wednesday that it will seek out the identity of individuals behind limited-liability companies that pay cash for high-end residential real estate in Manhattan and Miami-Dade County. Starting in March, title insurers will be required to name the true “beneficial owner” behind the anonymous entities, FinCen said in a statement.

FinCen is concerned that such opaque deals -- used by wealthy investors seeking to avoid the public gawking that comes with buying expensive property -- may also be made by people attempting to hide assets and launder money, according to the statement. By casting such a wide net, the new disclosure rules may discourage legitimate purchases and further damp interest in high-end sales in the two markets, which are already bracing for a slowdown.

“Part of the large swath of people who purchase under LLCs do it for privacy -- celebrities, the wealthy -- and are not doing something illegal,” said Jonathan Miller, president of New York-based appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. “I’m not downplaying that there aren’t people who are using ill-gotten gains to purchase apartments, but it stereotypes the whole segment and it seems to be some kind of overreach by the federal government. In a cooling market, it certainly isn’t helpful.”

Prices Slipping

Demand for Manhattan’s most-expensive homes is slipping while apartments from a high-end construction boom aimed at wealthy investors pile up on the market. Resale prices for the top 20 percent of the market peaked in February and have fallen every month since then, according to an analysis through October by listings website StreetEasy.

In Miami-Dade County, the stronger dollar is turning away Latin American buyers while 36,000 new units are in the construction pipeline, according to an estimate by South Florida development tracker CraneSpotters.com. The U.S. government measure will hurt sales and may drive investors to other locations such as Panama, said Peter Zalewski, owner of CraneSpotters. Their disappearance may lead to price declines in the market because overseas buyers, seeking a haven from the financial turmoil of their home countries, are often willing to pay more, Zalewski said.

“It’s a killer for Miami -- not because we’re afraid of drug buyers,” said Related Group of Florida Chief Executive Officer Jorge Perez, the billionaire developer known as the state’s “Condo King.” “You have to remember that a lot of wealthy people, particularly in South America, are very, very shy about disclosing their wealth.”

One57 Penthouse

Many deals at New York’s ultra-luxury towers are made by LLCs, including the first to close at 432 Park Ave., the tallest completed residential building in the Western Hemisphere. The 35th-floor condominium was purchased in December for $18.1 million, according to city property records made public last week. The most expensive closed sale of an apartment in New York City, the $100.5 million purchase of a penthouse atop Extell Development Co.’s One57, was to a buyer known only as P89-90 LLC.

“Just hearing that it’s going to be scrutinized by the United States government is going to give people pause on certain high-end purchases,” said Keith Pattiz, head of the real estate group at New York law firm McDermott Will & Emery, who has helped overseas buyers acquire property in some of Manhattan’s glitziest new condo developments. “People just don’t want everyone to know that they’re buying a $50 million apartment.”

Wealthy and foreign buyers might choose to keep their names hidden because of concerns about their personal security or a desire for privacy, said Leonard Steinberg, president of New York brokerage Compass.

‘Crazy Paparazzi’

“I challenge them to walk one day in the shoes of a really famous person to know what it feels like to be hounded like an animal,” Steinberg said of the government. “I’ve seen crazy paparazzi driving the wrong way down a one-way street just to get one stupid picture. Famous and rich people have children, too, and there’s a level of protection that should be provided for these people.”

The New York Times last year examined the increasing use of anonymous shell companies by global buyers seeking havens for cash. Among the findings were that 64 percent of condos at Manhattan’s Time Warner Center were owned by shell companies, and that at least 16 foreigners who have owned in the building have been targeted by government investigations. Secret buyers included former Russian senators, a Greek businessman who was arrested as part of a corruption sweep in his home country and a financier linked to the prime minister of Malaysia, according to the paper. Nationwide, almost half of the most-expensive homes are bought through shell companies, the Times reported.

The disclosure rules will take effect on March 1 and expire on Aug. 27, according to the statement from FinCen, the part of the Treasury Department that collects and analyzes data to safeguard the financial system from illicit use and combat money laundering.

Developer Scrutiny

The scrutiny may not be able to go beyond what some developers already apply to their buyers, said Kevin Maloney, principal and founder of Property Markets Group, which builds condos in both New York and Miami. As many as 60 percent of his firm’s sales are to buyers making their deals through LLCs, he said.

“For us, we meet and we talk and we get to know at some level the face of the LLC,” said Maloney, whose projects include a 1,400-foot (427-meter) tower under construction on Manhattan’s West 57th Street and the 190-unit Echo Aventura outside of Miami.

“We have turned away people who we think have unsavory pasts, so we do as much due diligence as possible.” Maloney said. “But if you want to put a guy up front and have him be the financial face of the LLC, there’s not much you can do.”

Perez of the Related Group, which has 10 condo towers under construction in South Florida, said the Treasury Department should find a way to make sure buyers “tell the truth about where their money is coming from” without forcing them to make a public disclosure.

“Remember, in their countries, they are afraid of being kidnapped, they are afraid of being killed, so privacy is a huge thing,” Perez said. “They don’t want the press to say in Colombia, ‘This guy buys $20 million condos.”’

- Bloomberg 

p/s 

Tuesdays have been reserved for the Wall Street Journal and they are still waiting. You guys in Bloomberg better be ready on Wednesdays. ;-)