All eyes on NFC's Kazakh condo: Was it a wedding gift or to gain favor with the Najibs?
Money and time are two of the most important things to Prime Minister Najib Razak if he wants to maintain his present position, but the supply of both is limited. His daily moves have all been planned out for the next 12 months, with the entire itinerary laid out and slotted in well in advance. There is really little room to maneuver or adjust unless there are some real emergencies, say his staff.Then there is the question of money. With a mere RM23,000 per month income as Prime Minister, there is no way Najib and wife Rosmah Mansor can live the luxurious and glamorous lifestyles that they both hanker after and chase for. Of course, Malaysians know that their first couple are on their own very prosperous, with critics pointing to Najib's former and "lucrative" career in the Defense ministry as the main source for their wealth. Till today, Najib is dogged by accusations he took a RM570 million kickback from French arms maker DCN for agreeing to buy 2 Scorpene submarines for the Malaysian government.
However, this may be money that Najib and Rosmah cannot be seen splashing around. Even if they could, they may not wish too. Avarice is a strange vice, and there are some people who only like spending other people's money - never their own.
Officials and servants who will no longer 'die' for the boss
Nonetheless, as the prime minister with all the power at his disposal and thousands of officials at his beck and call, his needs and wishes as well as those of his family can be easily fulfilled. Even for matters that the first couple do not wish to be seen doing, it is easy to persuade officials to sign all sorts of documents. The implicit threat of punishment or 'cold storage' is there. It is a real dilemma, to please the bosses or putting their own reputation and integrity on the line. Not to mention taking all the blame and never implicating Najib and Rosmah - no matter what happens.
But that was the 'style' of the past. Times have changed and officials are smarter and more cautious these days. No longer are they willing to 'die' for their bosses, as there are bitter examples to learn from such as Najib's two bodyguards who were sentenced to hang for murdering Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu, the mistress of the PM's good friend Razak Baginda.
No matter how powerful the PM is, the officials of today are more cautious; they keep copies of incriminating documents for 'insurance'. And they feel no compunction in exposing these to the public if there are attempts to make them sacrificial lambs. They too are fed up with both Najib and Rosmah, both of whom are said to be demanding bosses.
This could also explain why there has been such a wealth of information and detail on the way power was abused and money misappropriated by the overseers of the RM250 million NFC . The NFC is of course managed by the family of disgraced Umno minister Shahrizat Jalil, whose husband was earlier this week charged for criminal breach of trust.
Another point that supports the perception that the Najibs too abuse power is the perfect timing with which they have so far been matching personal matters with official work. It would not be strange if Najib has been taking the entire country for a ride since he became Prime Minister in 2009. Though they have plenty of money of their own, it is not impossible that they may prefer to spend other people's money including the public's. Hence, the 'cheapskate' label that has been attached to them.
'Perfect-timing' events
On May 17, 2011, the first couple ostensibly went on a working visit to New York and Washington DC, but they somehow ended up attending their daughter Nooryana’s graduation from Georgetown University.
Then weeks later in early June, Najib and Rosmah went on an official visit to Kazakhstan. Najib also led a delegation to the World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) held in Astana, the Kazakh capital. Was anyone surprised when the Najibs were accused of coinciding their trip to attend to personal matters such as their daughter's engagement to a powerful Kazakh family? More shocking were the allegations that the PM had included in his official entourage scores of personal guests invited to the engagement party there.
Indeed the Kazakh trip has come back to haunt the Najibs. At the WIEF, a memorandum of understanding was inked between NFC directors and the Jambyl district of Kazakhstan to raise cattle for export to Malaysia and neighbouring countries. Surely Najib must have been advised by his officials on the merit of the MoU and whether it was allowed for in the agreement between NFC and the Malaysian government to invest in Kazakhstan. Whether he had vested interests or not, Najib bulldozed the deal through.
RM1.7million condo a wedding gift?
NFC also bought a RM1.7mil luxury condominium in Kazakhstan last September, ostensibly to be used as an office. This acquisition along with the Bangsar and Singapore condos that NFC directors have been accused of corruptly buying is now the subject of a police probe, according to recent news reports
Why buy a luxury condo to be used as an office? Cattle rearing is not like investment or corporate banking where billionaire customers and high-flyers need to be entertained, or did the NFC directors consider the Najib family as such? Was the condo bought for the convenience of Najib's daughter or even Rosmah and other family members whenever they visit Kazakhstan?
Is it a wise business decision to make, using an expensive residential area to site an office when ordering the supply of cows, cattle feed and the like would be the main activity? Again, cows and condos don't mix. There is more than meets the eye since it would surely be wiser and cheaper to open an office in town or in the business district.
Frankly, there has been talk that NFC frequently helps several UMNO politicians by supplying cows for the “korban” rituals during the Hari Raya Haji, at very steeply discounted prices or even free. So to buy a condo to please the Prime Minister or for the convenience of his family would not be implausible.
Neither would selling the condo at a later date to the Najibs at a huge discount be out of the question. The Shahrizats can deny all they wish and accuse the opposition of making wild accusations, but they must explain why they made such a decision and was it in accordance with the regulations of the RM250 million soft loan granted by the Malaysian government.
Some even speculate the condo was a wedding gift to Najib's daughter. If so, then the floodgates will be opened as far as public outrage is concerned. That would be the height of all abuses and a slap in the face for the ordinary folk who are already seething and griping about how tough life has become due to shooting prices and costs of living.
Endorsing corruption!
It is not unfair to insist on full disclosure as this might be an example of the Gua tolong lu, lu tolong gua or I help you, you help me culture that is being publicly promoted by Najib himself. Thus, it must be thoroughly investigated. It is also why the Election Committee should have punished Najib when he first uttered such a comment. To not immediately act on corruption but to instead say there is nothing wrong, it is just the opposition making a mountain out of a molehill, only supports the continuation and further growth of such dirty culture.
This is why despite the decision to charge Shahrizat's husband - Salleh Ismail - for criminal breach of trust, few Malaysians have much faith in the Najib administration being able to recover the public money misspent. Now, to quell the storm of public anger, the Umno-media is going all out to issue reports that more NFC directors will be charged.
For the Shahrizats, it is a bitter lesson indeed. When it rains, it pours. The powerful friends whom they sought to gain favor with, can no longer afford to help them back. This is the nature of politics. Only the fittest survive. Even so, given the track record of both the Najibs and the Shahrizats, indeed of the entire BN government all these years, the chances are high for that the Shahrizats will eventually escape with lighter or token sentences.
Dinner bills scandal
Meanwhile, Najib and Rosmah too should be made accountable. A good start would be to explain the latest allegations they had passed on a RM410,000 dinner bill for the Putrajaya leg of their daughter's engagement celebration to Malaysian taxpayers. This is not funny as Malaysians have already had to pay RM1.1 million to fly the Najib's entourage to the WIEF last year, which allegedly included personal guests for the engagement party.
It is also extremely suspicious that Najib - with his RM22,826.65 monthly salary to be exact - should be able to blow RM80,000 on his own birthday party held later the same month. While his family may have enjoyed 2011 to the hilt, Malaysians have the right to ask how can their PM - who has denied abuse of power and insists he paid for both parties with his own means - afford to do so on his salary.
Furthermore, during Malaysia' National Day celebrations, Najib and family were caught sneaking off to Perth for a private holiday and using the government's private jet to ferry themselves and their guests over. When the number of incidents reeking of impropriety and abuse of power is so high, something is surely amiss.
Malaysia Chronicle
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