Rafizi to sue EPF, Tabung Haji over 1MDB deals

By MT Webmaster On May 21, 2015

(Malay Mail Online) – PKR’s Rafizi Ramli today said he will sue Lembaga Tabung Haji, the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), and Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP) over their transactions with 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

The Pandan MP said he was starting the legal action because their dealings with the troubled 1MDB involves public funds.

“I will sue KWSP and LTH next week. We are going to sue on the basis that they made frivolous and careless investment decisions,” he said during a talk on 1MDB in Serdang today.

“We want to seek an injunction that no such investment in 1MDB is going to be made here onwards,”Rafizi added.

He explained that the lawsuits were to press Putrajaya to be more transparent and accountable with the use of public funds.

He was speaking at a 1MDB talk alongside Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua and Serdang MP Ong Kian Ming where over 200 people attended.

The Pandan MP also urged former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to help his planned suit against KWAP as the PKR leader does not currently have the legal standing to do so.

“I invite Dr Mahathir to sue the pension fund because I’m not eligible to get pension yet, so I can’t sue,” Rafizi added.

However, Rafizi acknowledged that the lawsuits would be challenging as Malaysian law does not recognise the action he is seeking to bring against the agencies.

“Malaysian law doesn’t have class action lawsuits, so it is very tricky what we are trying to do.

“Most likely it (the lawsuits) will be thrown out of court, but it is matter of making a point,” he said.

The Finance Ministry revealed yesterday that KWAP and EPF have invested nearly RM3 billion in 1MDB.

KWAP, which manages pensions for the civil service, is Malaysia’s second-largest pension fund behind the EPF — a compulsory retirement fund for private sector workers.

The civil service pension fund recently came under fire by opposition lawmakers over a RM4 billion government-guaranteed loan to SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former subsidiary of debt-laden 1MDB.