No Letter States That RM25 Includes Interest, Says O.C Phang

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 - Former Port Klang Authority (PKA) general manager, O.C. Phang, told the High Court here today that she never received any letter from the Transport Ministry stating that the RM25 per sq ft (psf) land in Pulau Indah included interest.She said the Finance Ministry and Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB), the company which sold the land, also did not give her such a letter.Phang, 65, who is involved in the development of the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) project since 1998, said she only knew that the price included interest in January this year after being informed by two investigating officers.

However, she maintained the price did not include interest when cross-examined by lawyer Wong Kian Kheong, who represented former Transport Minister Dr Ling Liong Sik, who is charged with cheating the Malaysian Government.Dr Ling, 68, is charged with cheating the Malaysian Government by not disclosing to the Cabinet an additional interest rate of 7.5 per cent per annum on the purchase price of the land for the PKFZ project, which had been fixed at RM1,088,456,000 by the Valuation and Property Services Department (JPPH) based on RM25 per sq ft inclusive of the coupon/interest rate.

He also faces two alternative charges, of cheating and intentionally hiding from the Cabinet that the 7.5 per cent per annum was an additional interest rate on the land price.Dr Ling allegedly committed the offences at the fourth floor of the Prime Minister's Office, Perdana Putra building in Putrajaya, between Sept 25 and Nov 6, 2002.Phang, who is the 14th prosecution witness, said that a letter sent by Dr Ling to former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad also stated that the price of RM24 per sq ft did not include interest.

According to the court exhibit, the letter from Dr Ling, which contained the terms jointly agreed by KDSB on the land price at RM25 psf, as verified by the Valuation and Property Services Department (JPPH)and the Finance Ministry, was sent on June 29, 2002.

Also stated was the total price of RM1.08 million and the interest rate of 7.5 per cent for the 400 hectare piece of land.Meanwhile, under re-examination by deputy public prosecutor Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah, Phang said her statement pertaining to the issuance of bonds over the PKFZ land deal was based on her memory and report she received.Yesterday, Phang said that the issue on the bonds was never discussed and that she did not know that JPPH suggested the land value of RM25 for bond issuance.

The hearing before Justice Ahmadi Asnawi continues on Thursday.

 

Source : Bernama