Rafizi to tell all about 1MDB’s Cayman fund next week
PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli said he will reveal next week the details of 1Malaysia Development Berhad’s (1MDB) funds in the Cayman Islands.
"Besides myself, a team from the National Oversight and Whistleblowers (NOW) will reveal the individuals and companies involved in the hiding of public funds in the Cayman Islands."
He said in a statement that although Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan said the funds were being brought back to Malaysia, that was a separate issue.
"The Finance Minister and those involved in these clandestine dealings cannot just wash their hands of this issue by saying the funds are being brought back.
"The individuals and companies who were responsible for the funds being parked in the Cayman Islands should be held accountable for this expensive mistake."
Rafizi said he was shocked when Ahmad denied that Putrajaya was the guarantor for 1MDB’s debts, which have spiralled to RM41 billion.
"I have a copy of the loan agreement which clearly states that Putrajaya guarantees all of 1MDB debts," he said, adding that it was written in a vague and roundabout manner.
"The bottom line is that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's administration wants to hide behind technical reasons that the rakyat are guarantors for 1MDB's debts."
Rafizi said he will make public the copy of the loan agreement in Parliament on Monday at 11.30am.
He said if Ahmad did not clarify his statement before then, he would submit an emergency proposal in Parliament.
"I will refer Ahmad to the parliamentary special committee for lying in Parliament."
Ahmad said in Parliament yesterday the sovereign fund was bringing back the RM7.18 billion it had invested in the Cayman Islands.
He said the fund had already brought back 60% of its funds, and the balance 40% will return to Malaysia by year-end, despite the good returns that 1MDB had earned at the end of 2013, between 6% and 7%.
"So, there is no reason to claim that the money is lost, as accused by various quarters."
1MDB is Malaysia's second sovereign wealth fund after Khazanah Nasional Bhd.
Critics have long questioned the its heavy debts, usage of funds and opaque operations.
In September, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad wrote in his blog that 1MDB had already incurred a RM38 billion debt in just five years of its operations.
He was worried that Putrajaya, already facing a deficit budget, would not have the ability to help pay 1MDB’s debt.
He also said a large part of the money raised from the issue of debt paper by 1MDB was sent to the Cayman Islands, a move which many questioned.
In April last year, 1MDB brushed aside allegations that the investment was put in Cayman Islands companies and would vanish, saying they were baseless and an election ploy.
“1MDB has earmarked the proceeds for investments in the near future. Pending that, these funds for cash management purposes are currently placed under regulated and licensed international fund managers managing Cayman Island-based international standard fund structures,” it said.
Confident about 1MDB's world-class advisers, Ahmad said Putrajaya would leave it to the fund to decide who managed the RM7.18 billion.
He said some of the funds which had been brought back have been used for investments in 1MDB's projects such as the Tun Razak Exchange and Bandar Malaysia developments.
It had also been used to pay off its debts and for the purchase of power plants, which the fund had stakes in, he added.
In addressing the allegations levied against the fund, Ahmad said Putrajaya had only issued an explicit guarantee letter to the RM5.8 billion loan taken by 1MDB.
He also insisted the fund did not make third-party payments or overpaid investment bank Goldman Sachs International for bonds issued in 2012 and last year.
1MDB had been accused of paying Goldman Sachs fees of about 10%, which was an above-market rate.
"No fees were paid to any third parties, in fact Goldman Sachs is shouldering risks by doing the fund-raising exercise for 1MDB." – November 7, 2014.
