By Syed Akbar Ali
There is going to be a new CEO at the IIB or Iskandar Investment Bhd, the Khazanah owned company that is developing part of the Iskandar Region in Johor. Not surprisingly the former CEO of IIB has exited the scene in a cloud. There are comments flying around about financial losses, flash audits and the usual crap associated with Khazanah Nasional Bhd. Lest we forget Khazanah is a GLC or Government Losing Concern.
When they lost about RM100.0 million in a ridiculous tuna farming venture, Khazanah dismissed it just as part of doing business. Its a tiny drop in the gigabillion Ringgits worth of business they are shoveling out.
Well more billions are being racked up by 1MDB. Here is The Star :
"PUTRAJAYA: Billions of ringgit in investments are in the pipeline from Abu Dhabi, and are set to flow into two major projects in Kuala Lumpur and Sarawak.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the first would pave the way for Mubadala’s involvement in the Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD) real estate development, which is estimated to cost more than RM26bil.
In the second tie-up, Najib added, Mubadala, through Mubadala Industry, was looking to commit up to US$7bil (RM21.7bil) in long-term projects in the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).
Najib, who is also chairman of the board of advisers of 1MDB, announced that 1MDB posted a net profit of RM425mil for its first financial year ended March 31.
In his speech, Mubadala chief executive officer and managing director Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak said Abu Dhabi viewed Malaysia as an ideal investment platform linking the emirate to this region."
Here is the picture from today's Star. Everyone seems happy. Why not. They are handling our money. Billions of Ringgit.
I am impressed. RM425 million net profit? This is great. But just how did they generate this RM425 million net profit? Can we have some details? Is it actual cash in the bank? Or is it just profits “on paper” from some fancy “paper investments” in God knows what?
If 1MDB can generate RM425 million net profit after just one year of operations, why undertake risky real estate developments like KLIFD? Just continue doing what they are doing and churn out RM425 million net profit per year.
Why involve Mubadalla of Abu Dhabi in basically a real estate development? We are talking about land here. This is national pride and Malaysian capability involved. Is the Prime Minister suggesting that just 10 years short of becoming a developed nation, Malaysians don’t have the capacity or the technology to undertake a 34 hectare real estate project? We must invite foreigners from Abu Dhabi to develop 34 hectares?
And listen carefully ok : Abu Dhabi may not become a developed nation even in 50 years. 100 shopping complexes, 200 hotels and artificial ski slopes (like in Dhubai) do not a developed nation make. If there is a power failure, the artificial ski slope will become a waterfall.
Folks like Dato Syed Mohamed, the new CEO of IIB for example was the CEO of a US27 billion real estate project in Saudi Arabia. Why not ask him to develop KLIFD? Or Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhari? Or Mustafa Kamal? Or YTL, Berjaya, Putrajaya Development Corp or any number of other Malaysian companies. These people have developed land by the thousands of acres. 34 hectares is chicken feed. Why do we need foreigners to develop prime land in Kuala Lumpur.
So what is the real story behind this Mubadalla’s involvement in Sg Besi? Anyone’s finger is in the cookie jar? I cannot help recalling the corrupt Slumberjack and his SIL launching the failed and con job ‘Halal Hub” on Pulau Indah. Its been a few months since I last went to Pulau Indah. I recall the huge ‘Halal Hub’ signboard there rotting in the sun. It must have disintegrated completely by now.
They created a big splash about the ‘Halal Hub’ on Pulau Indah, converted the land for all the ‘halal food factories’ (none or few of which materialized) and sold the higher value land for quick gain. The land speculators made their money. It was a land grab. The Halal Hub itself is about as alive as a piece of drift wood.
About the aluminium smelter investment in Sarawak, well its becoming like Bigfoot. It has a huge footprint in the media, everyone has been talking about it for years now but it just does not materialize.
We just found out last week that 1MDB has invested RM3.5 billion in Petro Saudi. Petro Saudi in turn has invested more than RM1.5 billion to buy up Jho Low’s UBG Bhd. That is a circular flow of funds for Petro Saudi. But it means that we have sent our money out to Petro Saudi.
I checked out 1MDB's website. This is what they say about their Business Model:
“Business Model : 1MDB has a unique difference in its pursuit of economic growth. It creates business opportunities and forges global partnerships to bring home foreign direct investment for new high-impact growth”
I say kawan, how does sending out RM3.5 billion to PetroSaudi tally with “bring home foreign direct investment”? You are in breach of your own Business Model lah. And RM1.5 billion has come back from PetroSaudi, to pay off Jho Low and friends.
I have a nagging suspicion that the "foreign direct investment" by Mubadalla in the aluminium smelter in Sarawak will only happen AFTER Mubadalla has creamed off enough money from the Sg Besi development. Unless of course they put their money where their mouth is and place say a couple of billion US Dollars on the table right now. That would really be ‘bringing home foreign direct investment’.
Otherwise they will just be borrowing our watch, tell us the time with it, return the watch and then bill us for the service.
They have no technology for aluminium smelting or even in designing a shopping mall (has anyone heard of any Abu Dhabi shopping mall designers?) Neighbour Dhubai is saddled with USD80 billion worth of debt. Most of this money was wasted on grandiose property projects too. Abu Dhabi has bailed out Dubhai to the tune of USD10.0 billion.
1Malaysia Development Bhd considers themselves ‘the small brother of Mubadalla’. Why does this remind me of Rudyard Kipling again? 1MDB’s website also says :
“1MDB is professionally managed and governed by best global practices. It has a triple-tier check-and-balance system comprising a Board of Advisors, a Board of Directors and a senior management team”
Now the Board of Advisors includes this guy : Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubara. This is the same guy in the picture above with Najib (2nd from left, the guy with hair on his head). He is the CEO and Managing Director of Mubadalla which just signed the deal with 1MDB. Here is another picture of Khaldoon Khalifa at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Isnt this a conflict of interest? This guy Khaldoon Khalifa is an Advisor to 1MDB and he is also the CEO of the JV partner of 1MDB, set to make billions from this real estate development in Sg Besi. (OK let me guess, he excused himself from all of 1MDB’s deliberations about this JV projects. Wow. That should be watertight).
Here is some info about Abu Dhabi. The folks in Abu Dhabi wanted to use the ‘mee segera’ approach to develop an aircraft industry. First they bought huge numbers of airplanes and set up Emirates Airlines. Then they also went around buying aircraft engineering and servicing companies. So they got Mubadala to buy one SR Technics. SR Technics had hangars and engineering workshops around the world. In February 2009 Mubadala’s SR Technics group decided to close their Irish Operation (based in Dublin) with the loss of 1,135 jobs. Controversy arose when there were shortfalls in the pension scheme of the affected workers. The Irish Minister for Foreign affairs instructed Ireland’s closest ambassador to the UAE to impress upon Mubadala to make good on their commitments.
Mubadala also holds a stake in the infamous Carlyle Group. Carlyle is of course related to the genocidal neo-cons like Dick Cheney, Condoleeza Rice and the Bush family who planned and executed the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Carlyle group is the 11th largest defense contractor in the United States.
Now they are here. So baik-baik lah sikit. Here is another picture of Khaldoon Khalifa. Isnt that Thaksin? Interesting company indeed.
Here are two other guys who are involved with 1MDB. One is Bernard Arnault who is also an Advisor to 1MDB. Bernard Arnault is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Louis Vuitton Moet Hennesy a large luxury goods conglomerate consisting of over fifty luxury brands, including Louis Vuitton, Dior, and Fendi. According to Forbes Magazine, Arnault is the world's 7th richest person, with a 2010 net worth of $US27.5 billion.
Bernard Arnault is also a Jew. A very influential and powerful Jew. Here is a picture of Bernie with Henry Kissinger.
There was also some controversy involving Bernard Arnault and Tony Blair. Here is a picture of the Blairs and the Arnaults possibly on holiday together.
Bernard Arnault is listed among the top influential Jews in the United States. In 2007, Arnault was ranked the 8th richest person in the US (in a list of most influential persons). Here is a take from Vanity Fair Magazine:
American Jewish power for 'Vanity Fair' list
By Karyn Chenoweth Oct 13, 2007,
The 2007 list:
7 Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks (last year: 10)
8 Bernard Arnault, LVMH (last year: 19)
Here is some other news about Bernard Arnault
Begin quote :
"(Tony Blair) is close friends with Bernard Arnault, the chairman of the luxury goods conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy Group (LVMH), and has refused to publicly disclose whether or not he accepted a paid post as adviser to Arnault, as reported in the media.
LVMH has been implicated in benefiting from Israel's occupation of the West Bank through its subsidiary, the cosmetics retail chain Sephora.
At the end of May, the French-based Coordination des Appels pour une Paix Juste au Proche Orient (CAPJPO) (Coordinated Appeals for a Just Peace in the Middle East)launched legal action against Sephora because of its retailing of products made with stolen Palestinian natural resources in illegal Israeli settlements.
CAPJPO claims that Sephora has maintained an illegal contract with the Israeli cosmetics company Ahava whose products are made in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli settlements Mitzpe Shalem and Kaliya co-founded Ahava Dead Sea Laboratories and own 44 percent of the company. In addition, Ahava manufactures its cosmetics in a factory in the Mitzpe Shalem settlement and operates an information center for tourists there.
The mud used in Ahava products is expropriated without Palestinian permission from a site near Kaliya, along the shores of the Dead Sea within the occupied West Bank. However, Ahava labels its skin care products as originating from "The Dead Sea, Israel."
In July 2004, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) reaffirmed the illegality of Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank. Relying on the ICJ ruling, CAPJPO argues in its complaint that Sephora is supporting Israel's violations of international law by retailing Ahava products."
End quote
So Bernie Arnault, a Jew with business connections in Israel, has a subsidiary company in Israel that has been accused of stealing property from illegally occupied Palestinian land.
Haiyya !! Didn’t we just come out of the APCO PR agency Zionist conspiracy, Jews controlling Bukit Aman flap? Not enough excitement ke, Dato Prime Minister? Now we have Bernard Arnault to take up the slack? Takde ke orang lain?
Here is one more guy. This is Ashvin Valiram in the picture below (the guy lah), who has been appointed a Director of 1MDB. Ashvin is a product of the Jalan Masjid India area. The family started off as textile merchants in the Masjid India area. Ashvin Valiram is a retailer of high fashion items and brand names in Malaysia. Among many high fashion brands, he is also involved with the Jimmy Choo shoe stores here. Here is a picture of Ashvin with the Kardashian sisters at a Jimmy Choo launch. Dont the 'sisters' look like circus attractions ?
FYI Jalan Masjid India has produced three listed companies Mun Loong Bhd, Kamdar Bhd, Habib Jewels Bhd and also Mydin Hypermarket – which are (or were) major household names. I also do business in this area. Masjid India has also produced famous Bloggers :)))
Here is another picture of Ashvin with more fashion models. They dont look 'circusy'.
Another guy who was involved in the initial setting up of 1MDB (known then as TIA) is Jho Low aka Low Taek Jho who has been in the headlines – both internationally and locally – for his extravagant lifestyle and wild parties with Hollywood celebrities such as Paris Hilton.
Jho is said to run three investment funds and recently announced plans to make a major Hollywood movie in Malaysia.
“I have three funds – one for entertainment, movies and fashion, another for real estate and hospitality and the third for general investment. I will be introducing foreigners to invest in Malaysia’s property and heavy industries,” the Star reported Jho as saying on Monday"
I am trying to position folks like Bernard Arnault and Ashvin Valiram within the context of 1MDB's "Mission" and "Business Model". 1MDB eventually seeks to have RM11.0 billion in funds to play with. These folks will have a say over RM11.0 billion of our money ??
Maybe with the help of Bernard Arnault, Ashvin Valiram and Jho Low, 1MDB may set up “Big Momma Handbags and Fashion Accessories” at the KLIFD (Kuala Lumpur International Financial District). Who knows? As the stomach churns.
So all these rich folks are coming here because they like satay? Not likely. As someone said they smell money. If it is commerce, trade and honest profits, then they are all welcome (yes even Bernard Arnault, if anyone complaints then please stop using HP, Dell, IBM etc they all have some Israeli input especially software).
Sadly however our GLC boys indeed seem to play the ‘I am the younger brother role’ quite well. They seem to be easily influenced into paying billions of taxpayers Ringgit to Singapore. Most recently Khazanah Nasional ended up paying billions to a couple of Sikh Bhais for a stake in Parkway Holdings of Singapore.
There is an over reliance on ‘con-sultants’ who come up with the most fantastic schemes to blow billions of Ringgit in taxpayers funds.
1MDB raised RM5.0 Billion supported by a Government Guarantee (that is taxpayers’ funds also lah). But they are paying 5.85% pa interest rate on Government Guaranteed bonds. Malaysian corporations are raising 5 year bonds at much cheaper rates than that. It does not sound right. It only makes it easier for the underwriters and the finance boys to 'unload' the Bonds in the secondary market at easy profits.
We need high technology in vast quantities, especially new technologies. Most importantly the new technology must be relevant and immediately applicable to benefit our economy. It must be practical. We do not yet need the “moonbeam particle accelerator” which can “beam up” the Malayan tiger to the planet Mars and bring it back safely to earth. Well, not yet.
We need technology investments from technology intensive countries that may help us in this area. In the modern, flat and globalised world, high technology often comes with marketing networks and distribution channels. Technology operators know that even if you have a wonderful product, poor marketing and distribution may kill your product. So almost always high tech companies also come with good marketing and distribution know how. These are the type of people and investments we need in our country in large quantities.
(Lets not forget the early semi conductor and textiles investors in Malaysia. One day someone must write a book to give due regard to the semi conductor makers (Japanese, American, European) and the textile manufacturers (Taiwan, Japanese, Malaysian, Hong Kong) who set up all those factories and textile mills in Malaysia from the 1960s onwards. They have provided employment for millions of our workers. And there have been vast Malaysian owned spinoffs from these foreign investments. Areas like Batu Pahat in Johor became rich from textile investments).
We now have a new breed of investor too – the rich Middle Eastern Arabs who are usually scions of political oligopolies, authoritarian regimes and easy oil money. They usually have little or no technology to offer. Everything is hired or bought from the West. What they have is easy money. Todate their money flies around the globe very fast. They invest in Western share markets or buy strategic stakes in Western companies to earn a return. If things go wrong or markets sag, their money can fly back, none too different from flight capital.
We must be careful if we want to attract too much of this type of money, especially so because our economy does not generate its own technology. We are very low down on the tech curve. There are little or no technology investments in our country. Even the Arab investors will know this.
Bearing this in mind, these folks who do come here will look for the highest returns in the quickest possible time – hence real estate investments will appear attractive to them. If things go right, it is quick money. If things go wrong, its everyone for himself.
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