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Thursday, August 3, 2017

1MDB cannot pay IPIC as it cannot monetise units, MP says

PETALING JAYA - Tony Pua says he knows why 1MDB is unable to make the US$603 million (RM2.6 billion) payment to International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC), which was due on July 31.

In a statement today, the Petaling Jaya Utara MP said 1MDB had previously disclosed that “these obligations will be met by 1MDB, primarily via monetisation of 1MDB-owned investment fund units”.

“So, they don’t have the funds because ‘no bank in the world is willing to process the sale of the 1MDB-owned investment fund units’.

“This is because the United States Department of Justice had stated that these ‘units’ were fraudulent. They were created to cover-up the more than US$1 billion which were misappropriated by 1MDB to Good Star Limited when the intent was to have the funds invested with PetroSaudi International Limited.

“The Singapore Courts also confirmed that the financial analyst from NRA Capital in Singapore was bribed to produce a false valuation report on these investment ‘units’,” Pua said.

He added that as a result of these actions overseas, hence any bank, be it Malaysian or international, which facilitates the transaction involving the sale of these fraudulent investment ‘units’ by 1MDB would be guilty of facilitating money laundering.

On July 31, the state-owned 1MDB released a statement admitting it would not be able to fulfill the payment due to International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC), as it had not received the funds.

“Due to the need for additional regulatory approvals, the receipt of those funds has been delayed to August 2017.

“As these are the funds which will be used to pay IPIC, 1MDB has written to IPIC to inform them of our commitment to meet the obligations, originally due on July 31, 2017, in August 2017,” it had said.

1MDB was due to pay IPIC the first instalment of US$602,725,000 on July 31 as part of the settlement arrived at the London Arbitration Court between IPIC, 1MDB and the Ministry of Finance in April this year.

IPIC said in a filing it hadn’t received the payment, as well as a further US$26 million amount due on July 31.

“The only way for 1MDB to repay IPIC would be a direct payment by the government to IPIC.

“However, if that were to happen, it would be a direct admission by the government that 1MDB is carrying the fraudulent investment and billions of dollars have been lost and stolen from the company, which requires a further mega-bailout from the country’s coffers,” said Pua, who is also DAP national publicity secretary.

He called for Prime Minister Najib Razak to tell the full truth to the millions of Malaysians who are gravely concerned with the RM50 billion 1MDB scandal.

“If there is ‘nothing to hide’ and what we have stated above is in anyway without basis as the BN leaders often claim, then come to Parliament, answer questions and debate openly,” Pua said.

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