Explain Bernas cash transfer worth millions, says MP
PKR’s Gooi Hsiao Leung wants the Agriculture Minister to explain BERNAS’ huge advances to Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s group of companies.
(Free Malaysia Today) – PKR MP Gooi Hsiao Leung has demanded an explanation from the Agriculture Minister for the delisting of Padiberas Nasional Berhad (Bernas) from Bursa Malaysia, and the subsequent funnelling of large amounts of money into the Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary-owned parent company Tradewinds (M) Bhd (TWM).
The Alor Setar MP said that it was unacceptable for the national domestic paddy and rice industry partner to channel its profits to Syed Mokhtar’s group of companies, given that Bernas is heavily subsidised by the government to the tune of hundreds of millions of ringgit annually along with import duty tax exemptions and a monopoly on the rights to import rice.
“Clearly, such channelling of funds to Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s group of companies would not have been possible if Bernas was still listed as it would have faced fierce objections from minority shareholders as well as strict Bursa rules on disclosure and restrictions on related party transactions and loans,” Gooi said in a press conference outside Parliament today.
He referred to the announcement last week by Malaysian credit ratings provider RAM Rating Services that it had downgraded Bernas’ RM750 million Islamic notes due to deterioration of the company’s financial profile, and explained that the deterioration was the result of the large advances given to TWM worth over RM700 million.
“The question now is whether the plan to raid BERNAS of its cash was conceived right from the beginning when plans to delist BERNAS were announced to facilitate Syed Mokhtar’s takeover of BERNAS,” said Gooi.
Gooi referred to the delisting of BERNAS from Bursa Malaysia in 2014, and said that he had previously questioned the intentions behind said delisting that allowed Syed Mokhtar’s companies to take over BERNAS.
“I had argued that it should have been maintained as a public/government-controlled body, or at least continued to have stakeholders such as the National Farmers’ Association, NEKMAT, MADA and KADA to ensure that it continues to act in the national interests of rice farmers and millers,” said Gooi.
Gooi had apparently said that the handover of BERNAS control to Syed Mokhtar’s companies would have been against national interests given their shareholders’ profit-driven motivation, and that the Bursa delisting would have and had taken BERNAS out of the public eye without accountability to Bursa on its dealings.
