Ia buka cerita bagaimana adanya keputusan-keputusan penting seperti pemberian konsesi dibuat tanpa pengetahuan kabinet pada zaman pentabiran Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad .
Katanya bekas Perdana Menteri itu pernah luluskan konsesi perjudian untuk tempoh 20 tahun pada nilai RM25 juta saja sedangkan penerima konsesi boleh meraih pendapatan tahunan RM1 billion.
Bukan setakat itu saja konsesi berkenaan didakwa diberi kepada salah seorang rakan karibnya tanpa tender oleh Kementerian Kewangan empat bulan sebelum beliau bersara pada 31 Oktober 2003.
Malah keputusan itu didakwa dibuat tanpa pengetahuan kabinet.
Menteri Kewangan waktu itu ialah Dr Mahathir sendiri.
Eric juga persoalkan samaada kabinet diberitahu mengenai keputusan Kementerian Kewangan yang dibawah Dr Mahathir menulis surat pada 7 Oktober 2003 kepada Telekom Malaysia – dua bulan sebelum bersara – beri kelulusan kepada Telekom Malaysia beri kontrak secara runding terus tiga tahun bekalan bernilai RM214.2 juta kepada Opcom Sdn Bhd dimana Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir adalah pemilik saham terbesar.
Katanya mungkin Mukhriz hendak beri penjelasan hal itu.
Eric membangkit hal ini sebagai menjawab tulisan seorang bekas pengarang sebuah akhbar yang kini pro pembangkang mempersoalkan bagaimana Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak tidak tahu menahu mengenai konsesi tol yang dianugerah oleh Dr Mahathir sedangkan beliau ada dalam kabinet waktu itu.
Katanya memang benar Najib berada dalam kabinet sejak tahun 1986 bila dilantik sebagai Menteri belia dan Sukan,kemudian Menteri Pelajaran dan Menteri Pertahanan tetapi tidak pernah Menteri Kewangan atau Menteri Kerjaraya atau Menteri yang jaga Unit Perancang Ekonomi (EPU).
Menurutnya konsesi tol dirundingi dibawah EPU yang melapor terus kepada Perdana Menteri dengan imput dari Kementerian Kewangan - yang mana Tun Daim Zainuddin,Datuki Seri Anwar Ibrahim dan Dr Mahathir sendiri ketuai.
BERIKUT IALAH TULISA PENUH :
TOLL AND GAMBLING CONCESSIONS
I refer to an article in MalaysiaKini today titled "Where was Najib when toll deals signed, asks ex-NST editor" which attempts to point the finger at Prime Minister Dato' Sri Najib Razak as being complicit in the toll concessions, many of which were lop-sided, awarded by Tun Dr Mahathir while he was in office on the reason of Najib also being a cabinet member at that time.
While it was true that Najib has been a cabinet minister since the 1980s, after Mahathir appointed him minister of culture, youth and sports in 1986 and later on as Education Minister and then Defence Minister, he was never in the Finance Ministry in the Works Ministry or made the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) Minister the entire time that Tun Mahathir was Prime Minister.
Toll concession agreements are typically negotiated under the EPU which reports directly to the Prime Minister with inputs from the Finance Ministry - whom Tun Daim Zainuddin, Anwar Ibrahim and Mahathir himself headed.
For example, a 20 year gaming concession for sports betting was given out without tender by the Finance Ministry in June 2003 - just four months before he retired on Oct. 31 2003.
The Finance Minister and the Prime Minister at that time was Tun Mahathir himself.
Thus this exclusive license was quietly awarded by Mahathir to one of his closest associates at a bargain price of RM25 million without the knowledge of the cabinet.
At that time, Malaysian gaming-industry executives estimate that such a lucrative sports-betting operation, offering wagers on events such as local and foreign soccer matches and horse racing, could generate annual revenue of about RM1 billion.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) had reported about this several times at that time and has said that Mahathir's successor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his cabinet only learned that such a license was awarded the next year after Mahathir had retired.
Read here: http://ift.tt/2orW3XN
and here: http://ift.tt/2BTJHj3
As Tun Abdullah was also in cabinet in the years before Tun Mahathir retired. this means that Tun Mahathir had not brought up the award of this license to the cabinet for discussion and approval.
This proves that cabinet was not notified of all concession agreements during the time when Tun Mahathir was the Prime Minister.
Under Prime Minister Abdullah and Najib, the license-holder was never given approval to start operations.
In June 2010, Tun Mahathir had publicly confirmed of such a license awarded by him and is on record as saying that if he was still the Prime Minister he will allow the license-holder to start operations on the reason that "the Chinese like to gamble".
Read: Dr M: Lesen judi diluluskan jika saya berkuasa
http://ift.tt/2osrodd
In any case, Tun Mahathir had publicly taken responsibility of the lop-sided toll agreements in the year 2007 when he was quoted to have said:
"What you have is a cabinet which is not very knowledgeable all the time because it is not made up of experts but politicians (and) some politicians like myself can sometimes be stupid," said Tun Mahathir.
http://ift.tt/2gGpSzF
The quiet award of the 20 years gambling license by Tun Mahathir to one of his closest friend proves that under Tun Mahathir, not all concession agreements awarded by the government are discussed in the cabinet.
There is also doubt if the cabinet was also notified of the decision by the Finance Ministry under Tun Mahathir to write a letter to Telekom Malaysia on 7th Oct 2003 (less than 2 months before he retired) to give approval for Telekom Malaysia to award a 3 year RM214.2mil supply contract via direct negotiations to Opcom Sdn Bhd where the son Mukhriz Mahathir was the majority shareholder.
Perhaps Mukhriz would want to clarify?
Eric See-To.
Sumber asal: Tidak semua kelulusan konsesi zaman Dr Mahathir dibincang dalam kabinet…
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