KUALA LUMPUR – Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) did not carry out adequate due diligence in its purchase of a government land to fund the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) rationalisation plan in 2017.
The Chairman of Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Wong Kah Woh said, the procurement of 18335, Lot 41, Seksyen 51, Bandar Kuala Lumpur (Lot 41 Land) was made under the jurisdiction of the central bank and the Ministry of Finance (MOF).
The PAC made the findings on 20 September 2021 after summoning the Deputy Auditor-General (Performance), Patimah Ramuji; Secretary-General of Treasury, Datuk Asri Hamidon and the Governor of Bank Negara, Datuk Shamsiah Mohd Yunus in a proceeding.
It is part of the findings stated in the 2019 Auditor-General’s Report (LKAN) and the Federal Agencies Compliance Audit presented to the Parliament on 10 December 2020.
The Chairman of PAC, Wong Kah Woh said that the procurement was settled within a short four months and all these raised the question if BNM was facing any pressure from the government in making the decision.
He said, the Lot 41 land procured at RM2.07 billion based on an evaluation conducted by Suleiman & Co, was high.
Meanwhile, the Valuation and Property Services Department (JPPH) had evaluated the lot at around RM1.42 billion based on the existing ownership status.
According to him, the RM2.07 billion price tag was not justified. Furthermore, BNM did not have any plan to buy that land prior to being offered by the MOF.
The procurement plan for Lot 41 land also did not exist in the BNM yearly strategic plan for the period between 2015 until 2017 despite the central bank stating that the purchase was to develop a long-term financial service education hub.
Kah Who added, the sales of the said land to BNM by the government through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) Company, Hartanah Mampan Sdn. Bhd. was catered for the 1MDB rationalisation plan.
The payments were made by BNM on 19 December 2017 (RM1.035 billion) and 27 December 2017 (RM1.035 billion). The proceeds from the sales were used to pay 1MDB’s debts under the rationalisation plan on 31 December 2017.
The PAC also recommended for the government to allow BNM to make investment and development related decisions without being influenced by any parties and it needs to settle Land Use Category from ‘None’ to ‘Building’ and breaking the boundaries/sub-division with the part of the land owned by Malaysia Space Agency (MYSA). -MalaysiaGazette
