Appearances by Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz yesterday and 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy the previous night have failed to stem the erosion of public confidence in the probe of 1MDB as the ringgit fell to 4.08 against the US dollar at noon.
Zeti’s statement yesterday seemed overly cautious and did not reveal much that wasn’t already known. What was somewhat revealing was that a report had been submitted to the attorney general.
She seemed to put the thrust of the responsibility of reporting suspicious transaction to the banks, or at least that was my impression from the news reports that emerged. She didn’t tell us if the Ambank brought the transaction to the attention of Bank Negara and if so, what the central bank’s response was. Did Ambank report the RM2.6bn to Bank Negara or not? A simple Yes or No is all that is required? If yes, what did Bank Negara do about it?
But Zeti said she couldn’t talk about specific accounts under the law. Hey, we are talking about RM2.6bn going into the bank account of the prime minister/finance minister. And she can’t say anything… How is that going to inspire confidence?
As an acquaintance pointed out, “The finance minister is her ‘boss’, so how?”
Ultimately, her appearance, breaking a long silence, wasn’t enough to stem the erosion of confidence in key institutions.
Arul’s appearance on TV3 the night before was full of PR cliches and repeated jargon like “aset yang kukuh”, “asset rationalisation” and his most frequently used “cashflow mismatch” (wah, so simple!).
He did not tell us that the “aset yang kukuh” was largely due to the cheap land it had acquired at the expense of the federal government and this helped to boost the total 1MDB asset valuation..
I watched out of curiosity without paying too much attention (after all, this was over TV3). I must say he is a smooth (too smooth, perhaps?), confident and eloquent speaker, but ultimately the substance was lacking – too much resort to the jargon that he failed to convince (me, at least).
He droned on about Edra, “asset rationalisation” and IPIC generating funds or pumping in money to repay debt without explaining in much detail why they have to pump in so much money in the first place (apart from general explanations about the “cashflow mismatch” and infrastructure spending for the TRX project).
He also seemed to take comfort in the “siasatan yang menyeluruh” by various agencies, making 1MDB the “most investigated” entity in the country and said he and his colleagues were ready to appear before the PAC – conveniently omitting to mention how some of these investigations had been disrupted in various ways.
Unfortunately, I don’t think Arul’s confidence in the ongoing investigations is shared by many. A lot of the focus is perceived to be in identifying the leaks and whistleblowers in the system.
The questions softly lobbed at Arul by the TV3 interviewers skirted around the issues, without going in for the jugular. This sort of easy questions, with no serious follow-up, wasn’t enough to wipe the smile off the 1MDB CEO’s face.
TV3-mah. Its ‘exclusive’ seemed more like a friendly chit-chat. Only the teh tarik and kuih-muih was missing.
P.S. Did Arul mention anything about the role of Jho Low, the man everyone is looking for? If he did, I must have missed it.
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Malaysia is paying the price for weak foreign currency holdings and messy politics as the cost to protect its debt soars to near a four-year high. UBS Group AG predicts even more pain ahead. The spread on the nation’s credit-default swaps widened 74 basis points in 2015 to 180 this week, a level not seen since October 2011. It’s the worst performing in Asia and almost 40 basis points more than similar-rated oil-producer Mexico, which the Swiss bank says best illustrates the malaise for Malaysia. “The moves in CDS are telling us that the market is increasingly nervous about the… Read more »
A Politweet study has shown that Dr Mahathir has been more effective than the opposition in keeping public interest alive on the 1MDB controversy The pollster also noted that allegations against the state-owned investor were not widely shared on Twitter until May when news broke about Muslim pilgrims fund Lembaga Tabung Haji’s purchase of land in the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) from 1MDB, which Twitter users perceived as a bailout for the state investment company that is RM42 billion in debt. Politweet said it found that Twitter users often blamed Mr Najib for the rising cost of living, the ringgit… Read more »
WWE Summer Slam this coming Sunday.
But we have a better feud/fight between Mr Money In The AmBank and Mr 10% right here in Bolehland!
That is why that Multimedia stooge Salleh in the Ah Jib cabinet is planning to curb social media.
BN will suffer backlash if they try to enact any law to curb FB, Twitter etc!
We don’t need no ice cream peddler’s wheel of ‘spinning’ & shoot (gun with dart) your ice cream luck. We don’t need no Nasi Kandar’s splash of ‘mix’ curries to make it look good & savoury. And we don’t need no Apom baking of open, close & open, close & empty of Apom. We don’t need no Teh Tarik to cool down drink when it’s still too hot to handle. What we want is straight answers on the next day of Revelation by WSJ & SR. Why the continuous spinnings that don’t tally the truth & counter-investigation via witch-hunt (of… Read more »
Watch this great speech by Mat Sabu, asking if DAP is responsible for all the financial scandals in Malaysia:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84cEhS4i1Po
I urge all the watch this interesting speech!
Now, it is war between two brothers, yang and tunglang… This morning i went to the market, and found that the cheap battery is now RM2.5, used to be RM2. The trader said wonder how the poor can manage and survive in time like this. I said i am affected too with gst. He replied, yes everyone does damn this b…. govt… Tunglang, forget about yang, he is already demon possessed, dont waste your strength and precious time. Truly, we see a person ‘s true character when one faces challenges, what more in yang’s case he just cant reap from… Read more »
Too bad ah yang cannot see and distinguish black and white justice and unfairness, criticism and praise. How can a senior staff just transfer out of macc for doing his job? A result of being no conscience, heartless and no grief.
If Brother Yang was not from Madras Lane, I wouldn’t give a damn. When you stayed in inner city George Town (in the 60s, 70s) you somehow treated your neighbours as brothers & sisters, whether Chinese, Malays, Indians or Seranis. The doors were always open. Even in political divides, you never drove a wedge in between neighbourly friendship. I just feel sorry for Brother Yang. Can’t he remember the way MadHatter’s BN gomen discriminated against us non-bumi in our MCE exams? That is one of the unsavoury things done by racist BN that I will never forgive & forget –… Read more »
Julius Caesar and Brutus were brothers, right? They lived on same alley called Caligulia Lane in Rome! See what happened like Tuah vs Jebat btotherly warriors?
Just went to good court opposite SPICE. Noodles like won tan Mee only RM2 from 7am to 2pm. PROMO with kopitiam boss absorbs the cost using coupons issued. Save money for FTZ workers.
Anil,
Velloo Villas Indian food to open there soon fyi
Velloo Villas is moving from present lot in Bayan Baru?
Hang Tuah took on his sworn brother Hang Jebat in the name of justice and disobey the palace order.
Now you know why this classic P Ramli’s movie has never been shown again on RTM or TV3.
Just like Wan Azizah who feel sorry for Mudyiddin wife, I think she should instead be feeling sorry for herself the way her husband threw her into the political limelight which she did not want. I have said many times don`t feel sorry for others. This is a game of who win or lose. I met a friend, a retired MPPP during a hike. He said all these politicians are liar and deceits. From there its our chosing and its chosing for our benefits and gain. Thats the REALITY. I am not against you whatsoever. Like I said I have… Read more »
Hallelujah, Yang disown brotherly connection with tunglang just bcuz the latter agree to disagree with him?
In 1975, the PM was Tun Abdul Razak while the Minister of Education was Dr. M. It was under the reign of Tun Razak that the 2 NEPS, the New Economic Policy and the National Education Policy, were introduced. It was under the latter policy that the BM was made a compulsory pass subject in the MCE (later SPM) and the BM was increasingly used for all subjects except the English language. During that transition period, many high flying non-Malays failed the whole examination because of the 1 subject simply because of the lack of emphasis and importance placed onto… Read more »
Ed G: During that transition period, many high flying non-Malays failed the whole examination because of the 1 subject simply because of the lack of emphasis and importance placed onto that subject all along. Looking back, it would had been fairer (and kinder) if the transition were to be less abrupt. I beg to differ. Many non-Malay top scorers of 1975 batch in Penang Free School were fluent in BM, orally & written. They were well prepared knowing the compulsory credit requirement for BM & a Grade 1 MCE Cert in order to proceed to Form Six, the only passage… Read more »
Now very talented and top scorers are given irrevalent courses, those not to their preference. At one time, mainly grade 3 holders are eligible for teacher training course. This i s what happened to our education standard.
Tunglang: In any case, the non-Malay students have learned the ropes and are securing As and A+s in the BM subject by the ten of thousands each year. The trick behind this is not just to be fluent in the language but to understand where to get the marks. A good (tuition) teacher is even able to guide a student with average command towards achieving an higher credit or even distinction. For example, the students are taught to attempt only factual questions of social orientation. These students are then fed with points; many of which are versatile for this type… Read more »
Anil
Not sure if Veloo Villa will still operate at D’Piazza shoplot after they move to cheaper rental food court opposite SPICE.
Anyway, bet you prefer cheaper set lunch from them if they can pass on rental savings to consumers like us, right?
Fyi D’Piazza is kind of jinxed for food business as most eventually moved per past trend.
Yes the place is looking quite deserted inside. Oversupply of property here?
EdG
A reputable tuition tutor who has ecperience in setting past exam papers know the tricks, and he reportedly earns RM20K a month from his tuition centre able to get students to learn to get good grades.
This is the problem with Malaysian education system & policies – a discriminative racist system that leads to defeatist education pursuits & rote + spot learning just to pass or score in exams: 1) Students are more concerned with scoring many As (to enter reputable schools & unis) but the pursuit of knowledge is a compulsory daily drudgery. 2) Linguistic mastery is half-past-six which is not reflected in exam results but attested in the workplace after schooling is done deal. Effective communication is not properly taught & entrenched & mastered. 3) Some teachers are less passionate to teach the young… Read more »
Discrimation against good students based on skin color has caused outflow of talents, particularly to Singapore. Down with the racist policy of umno!
Those with MCE (Malaysian Chinese Examination?) tend to have better command of English Language (syllabus 121?).
Unfortunately the authority has decided to defer the compulsory pass of English Language in SPM, possibly because many malay students in the kampong could not cope (or the teachers themselves could not cope) and we will see further decline in the standard of English in new generation, especially since the English cartoon shows on TV1 and TV3 are now dubbed to Bahasa.
Phobia of foreign languages esp. England English always leads to almost illiteracy of language + communication skills. In this digital age, are you going to communicate with your own dialects???
Will you find knowledge written or spoken in your own limited mother tongues?
owc: I far as I can recall, the MCE stands for Malaysian Certificate of Education which was the Malaysian Education Ministry’s equivalence for the British Senior Cambridge ‘O’ Level examination and was supposed to be taken at the end of Form 5. The MCE has been completely replaced by the fully malay language SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) since 1980 in line with the Tun Abdul Razak’s National Education Policy. Therefore, it is not surprising that those with the MCE certificate are better versed in the English Language as most of the subjects taken were taught in English. Furthermore, it was… Read more »
Gerakan Teng in Penang and DAP Teng in Selangor are two brothers but they share different political aspiration. The one in Penang is just a stooge for Umno.
Tunglang, the choice is yours. Do not be misled by your Brother Yang.
Exactly, should we be very angry.
Should we be very angry with the an opposition Cat senior that is now COLLUDING with a former PM who for 22 years have destroyed the transparency and independency of our institution from the judiciary to every sector of the govt department to what it is today.
Is he now abetting him to continue on that destruction path with his anointed successor.
We are dunggu and pea brain to believe. Silence is golden from you to a man who destroy the insititutions for 22 years which you claim but meow2 at the opposition. Opposition to oppositon means dr m’s men.
Yang needs to have his head examined.
It’s been aaid from donors. Now WHAT. Curse MACC but Cats men now love them is it not. Is this the karma or the ying.and yang the balance of everything. Ifthe balance of what you get. So don’t fret
I Want To Believe This:
Najib’s RM2.6 billion is from Saudi Arabia as thanks for fighting Isis, claims Umno leader
But My Ying Ring A Bell Woke Me Up.
What other alibi is on the way?
(Is it) more likely that the money came from IS since Najib praised their bravery then?
Lah, Lah, Lah, Lah, Lah!!!
Naik Jeep can do better than me!
Lah, Lah, Lah, Lah, Lah!!!
Such is the wishful thinking of recent breed of PMs.
IT’S SO OBVIOUS! No Need For Yang & Ying.
MACC RM2.6 billion probe states the obvious, yet says nothing – See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/macc-rm2.6-billion-probe-states-the-obvious-yet-says-nothing
Malaysians, are you angry enough yet?
Yes, I am very, very, very ANGRY!
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/opinion/julia-yeow/article/malaysians-are-you-angry-enough-yet
SR report $ now transferred back to Spore account. Red dot can now hold ransom for cheaper water?
Go drink coconut water to stay cool no point get angry save energy for keyboard warfare.
To many oppositions leaders and their supporters, Singapore has one of the most honest and transparent govt. They love Singapore so much just like now they love MACC so much. Lets see whether they will turn the other way round this time.
Please PM Lee Hsien Loong talk properly or you will be accused of splling worms. haha I am waiting for Singapore reaction not karma
Singapore will roll out Silver Support Scheme that offers quarterly payouts of S$300 to S$750 to low-income Singaporeans aged 65 and above. For a start, the bottom 20 to 30 per cent of elderly Singaporeans, or an estimated 150,000 seniors, will benefit.
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/laws-silver-support-scheme-passed-parliament
Stay cool as barang naik is happening with weaker ringgit.
Your kopi may cost more soon.
Read this NYT’s article “Why Starbucks Prices Went Up as Coffee Beans Got Cheaper”:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/your-money/why-starbucks-prices-went-up-as-coffee-beans-got-cheaper.html?_r=0
Appreciate your kopi kau kau!
Bloomberg: “foreign funds have dumped about $3 billion of the nation’s shares this year as Prime Minister Najib Razak grapples with allegations of financial irregularities at a state investment company.”
So the root cause of the problem should be eliminated.
Bersih 4 is one way to go:
– Clean elections
– Clean governance
– Saving the economy
– Preserving the right to dissent
The main objective for the Bersih rally will be calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Najib.
Najib or Rosmah should use their ‘connection’ in Middle-east to get OPEC to reduce oil output so as to arrest the falling oil price to save our economy?
World oil output leading to falling oil prices is part of American agenda to bring Russia to its knees.
The oil sheiks must have got something in return for such manipulation of supply.
BUT in the long run, Russia will be the leading oil & gas supplier when the sheiks’ & US’s oil run dry.
So, Russia must bear thro’ it.
Obama has indirectly brought Najib to his knee, instead of Putin the intended target? We shall see how Najib respond to Obama TPPA’s courtship.
The case of Naik Jeep is the inevitable play of Karma Law of Returns for MadHatter of Helang Island to see his legacy unfolding. Too bad that the falling oil prices & commodities coincided with the revelation by WSJ & SR which have detrimental effects on investors confidence in Malaysia. We will see a global currency warfare at play from Wall Street (twinning with global oil price manipulation) to disrupt economies of nations (esp. Asian) & to distort realities of national economic performances which now favours the Greenbacks. See how Georgie Sorrowful timely withdraw his investment in China as part… Read more »
Sarawak Report has claimed that US$650 million out of the US$681 million deposited into the personal account of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak was transferred abroad after the 13th general election. The portal said that the money was transferred back to Tanore Finance Corporation at Falcon Bank in Singapore, the same company that had made the initial deposit into Najib’s personal accounts, according to an emailed statement from Sarawak Report. It said the transfer happened on the same day Najib’s AmBank account was closed on August 30, 2013. It added that Tanore Finance Corporation was subsequently closed down in April… Read more »
Yesterday 1pm assured that he could stop the Ringgit from bleeding, and this afternoon it was traded at RM4.15:US1, and the money changers in Thailand refused to trade Ringgit for now. What shame 1PM !!!
1mdb’s CEO looks more like a magician to me !!!
Puan Zeti looks clean in appearance but from her speech, what came out were all worms.
1Malaysia is damn like it or not !!!
Today worm, haha tomorrow it could be gold. Maybe munching pop corn will help
Yes just like Cat senior, yesterday M syaitan today Angel
Pop corn too yankee. Kangkong cheaper with belachan. Cat is anytime better than dogs here licking the boots. Sorry forget after licking there is a good share of the donation
One side I see the worm so do I see on the other side. Who.Is the foolhardy to be fooled cos.I shall go the way my karma enlighten me to
Karma for your last month claim that PAS will take over Selangor Gomen in this month August. Angel or Satan to pas
Zeti vomited (another way of hinting) the worms, Darth Vader summoned the Council of Galactica.
The Black Hole is waiting to suck the criminals still on the loose in space.
There is no hiding even in timeless black space.
Unless one is foolhardy enough not to ‘see’ the worms for the rotten.
The 1PM’s Gotterdammerung is approaching.
Love your party, see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.
Be blind, be deaf, be dumb.
And let’s sink together!!!
When CAT & PKR supporters are being in a state of trance and obsession, even when CAT/PKR leaders said (something foul) is fragrant and good, their supporters will still agree and eat it.
Tadika Nur Cemerlang welcome those yang berfikiran sempit to learn the basics of life.
Arul Kanda had initially claimed that the redeemed investment of 1MDB was in “cash” which was subsequently found out to be untrue as they were in “assets”. Then it was later revised to be in “units”, which means that no real “redemption” took place in January as announced by 1MDB. Arul Kanda must therefore explain what exactly are these mysterious “units” parked in BSI Bank Singapore. Are they backed by listed or private company shares, or by properties or other assets? More importantly, what is the bank-assessed valuation of these so called “units”?
Arul is hired to spin like gasing, to fool the ignorant kampung folks.
He is bald like Harith Iskandar and can take part in Raja Lawak.
I support Liew Chin Tong’s 5 ways to save Malaysia from the looming crisis: 1. Get Najib to quit as prime minister Let’s admit that Najib Razak is a problem. While there are other global factors contributing to the decline of our economy, Najib is the cause to the loss of confidence in the integrity of Malaysia’s institutions. As the “political dead man walking”, his continuation as prime minister is causing more harms to Malaysia’s economy. 2. Name a new and competent finance minister Even if leaders of the ruling parties couldn’t get rid of Najib as prime minister as… Read more »
For those who can only understand BM:
5 JALAN KELUAR UNTUK MENYELAMATKAN EKONOMI
1. Najib perlu berundur dari terus menjadi Perdana Menteri
Kita patut akui bahawa Datuk Seri Najib Razak merupakan suatu ‘masalah’ kepada Malaysia hari ini. Walaupun terdapat faktor-faktor global lain yang menyumbang kepada kemerosotan ekonomi negara, Najib adalah punca kepada kehilangan keyakinan terhadap integriti institusi-institusi di Malaysia. Seperti mana ‘bangkai yang bernyawa’, mengekalkan Najib sebagai Perdana Menteri hanyalah akan menyebabkan lebih banyak kemudaratan kepada ekonomi Malaysia.
http://www.roketkini.com/2015/08/15/5-cara-untuk-menyelamatkan-ekonomi-malaysia/
Arul’s interview on TV3 was meant for kampung folks. It was TV3 afterall.
Zeti was cautious probably because IGP was watching over her.
As I write, KLCI today has dropped 31 point to 1,590.
Investors are pulling out their money knowing that these people are recycling old tales with no substance at all.
The TV3 interviewed Arul in Bahasa, definitely for kampung consumption. I suppose the kampung people’s lifestyle is not yet greatly impacted by the falling Ringgit and stocks as they look forward to BR1M payment. They remain to be Najib’s safe deposit so long as the ‘kencing’ speech from that Umno Langkawi rep does not reach their ears.
‘Kencing’? Pemuda Dan Wanita Umno Mengamuk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuDjGG_kCFg