MACC clears A-G and Robert Phang of graft

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) cleared Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail of graft allegations over his Haj pilgrimage to Mecca with his family.MACC also cleared former MACC Consultation and Corruption Prevention Panel member Tan Sri Robert Phang of having tried to bribe a ministry's secretary-general.There was not enough evidence to prove graft, according to the MACC on Tuesday.Malaysian online news portals and bloggers had been playing pictures of Abdul Gani seen together with Shahidan Shafie, who was said to be close to former Malaysia Airlines chairman Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli in the recent haj pilgrimage in Mecca.

They had claimed that Shahidan had convinced Abdul Gani not to press charges against Tajuddin, who was chairman of MAS from 1994 to 2001, over the national carrier's loses which ran into billions.MAS was reported to have filed several reports against Tajuddin with the MACC, citing Tajuddin's move to relocate MAS' cargo operations in Amsterdam and Frankfurt to a single hub in Hahn, Germany, as the single biggest loss suffered under him.The new hub operation reportedly incurred monthly losses of between RM10mil to RM16mil before it was terminated and the government took over control of MAS in 2001.

Meanwhile, the allegation against Phang was that sometime before Hari Raya of 2010, the secretary-general of a ministry, which was awarding a contract worth RM900mil, had to tell Phang to leave his office because Phang had tried to bribe him.

More in The Star Wednesday ( 1st June 2011)

Najib To Attend Nikkei International Conference

KUALA LUMPUR -- Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is scheduled to attend the 17th Nikkei International Conference in Tokyo on Thursday, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.It said Najib, who would be accompanied by his wife Rosmah Mansor, would be on a two-day working visit to Japan beginning tomorrow.The statement said this would be the first Nikkei International Conference to be attended by Najib after he assumed the post of prime minister in April 2009.Najib is expected to deliver a keynote address at the conference and is scheduled attend a round-table meeting with the Japan-Malaysia Economic Association, it said.The Nikkei International Conference is an annual forum that brings together political leaders, including many heads of government, and top business executives from Asia to discuss the development and future of the region.  

US firms to invest RM5-6b here

NEW YORK: Several multinational American companies will  invest between RM5 billion and RM6 billion in Malaysia over the next two to three years, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.He said the investments would flow into the advanced electronic, renewable energy, oil and gas, information and communication technology, health care equipment, pharmaceutical and services sectors.In fact, he said Motorola, which has been operating in Malaysia for the past 37 years with about 7,000 employees, would invest about RM4 billion to set a Global Excellence Centre at its Pulau Pinang plant to provide service support for customers throughout the Asia Pacific.

A CALL TO REJECT THE POLITICS OF THREATS AND RACE

PRESS STATEMENT BY
TAN SRI DATUK ROBERT PHANG. Justice of Peace.
Chairman – Social Care Foundation

The Chinese community is an integral part of Malaysian society and the exercise of their intellectual rights should not be subjected to any political threats or intimidation. History has shown that the Chinese are pragmatic and open-minded and seek only fair implementation of policies by the Government of the day. The views I express below are the culmination of Chinese thoughts based on the above principles. 


1. During the past MCA presidential campaign, I took out an advertorial at my own cost to denounce Dr Chua Soi Lek as a bad apple compared to Ong Tee Keat. Some members of the public misunderstood my action to mean that I am an MCA member and was taking sides in that party presidetntial elections.