Both of these units are just on top of a high-end restaurant managed by Shahrizat’s family in Singapore called Brawn Steakhouse.
PKR strategic director Rafizi Ramli said that the units were both bought on May 27, 2010, and belonged to Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s husband Mohamad Salleh Ismail and son Wan Shahinur Izzan Mohamad Salleh.
Rafizi showed reporters at the PKR headquarters here titles from the Singapore Land Authority that showed that the units bought were at Marina Bay Suites, Central Boulevard.
One was worth S$ 7,114,000(about RM17.2million), funded by a United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB) loan; and the other S$7,177,00 (about RM17.3million), funded by a Maybank loan.
“Both of these units are just on top of a high-end restaurant managed by Shahrizat’s family in Singapore called Brawn Steakhouse. They were not careful and it was easy to trace,” said Rafizi, who obtained help from Malaysians in Singapore as well as private detectives.
Rafizi said this shows again that the management of NFCorp had formed a few companies in Singapore for personal businesses, but those were funded by transfers of taxpayers’ money from the RM250 million government loan given to the NFCorp.
“Before this, we showed that RM1.3million was transferred from NFCorp Meatworks (Singapore) Pte Ltd between October and December 2010,” said Rafizi.
Rafizi said that the latest two condominium units is more evidence that the RM250 million government loan for NFCorp was used for personal reasons.
“We cannot run away from the RM250 million. That amount was supposed to be for the production of beef but it was leveraged for personal purposes,” said Rafizi.
Money trail
He said he believed that NFCorp had parked in the RM250 million into the banks as a leverage to obtain such huge loan amounts.
“We suspect that the loan facilities were allowed because they control a fund of RM250 million, and placement of fixed deposits is a lucrative business. Any bank would want you to put RM250 million in their bank.”
“Basically, through the leveraging of the fixed deposit funds, they were able to obtain lots of loans to buy many things,” Rafizi said.
He said that with the latest exposé, PKR has so far revealed questionable personal assets of Shahrizat’s family funded by NFCorp money to the tune of RM62.1million.
“So far we’ve revealed two units in One Menerong Bangsar worth RM13.8 million and one condo in Orchard Scotts worth RM9.9million, Mercedes Benz CLS 350 CGI worth RM535k, two plots of land in Purtajaya worth RM3.3million,” said Rafizi.
Asked if PKR has documented evidence to prove the link between the condominiums and NFCorp, Rafizi said PKR had disclosed earlier that NFCorp had deposited RM250 million into a Maybank account.
“We suspect that it is through the same Maybank Shah Alam branch that they got the loan for the condominium unit here,” he said, adding that NFCorp has five to six Maybank accounts.
Rafizi urged the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the police to investigate, besides doing an auditing on the NFCorp to look at the money trail.
Moral courage
He also posed three questions to NFCorp, Shahrizat and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak:
To NFCorp management – “What is the proof by the management that the loans taken for the Marina Bay suites has nothing to do with RM250 million for NFCorp? We put it to the management that they have leveraged public funds to enable them (Shahrizat’s family) to buy the condominium. It’s a misappropriation because they are not supposed to do that.”
To Shahrizat – “Are you brave enough to come forward to make public the income of your family to show how it is possible to buy these condominiums? If you cannot prove that your combined household income is up till half a million, then it was impossible to service those loans you took.
Rafizi also said that with all the allegations so far it was imperative that the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) be set up to look into the scandal.
“It has gone beyond a cattle project. There have been attempts to cover up. Looking at the extent, the best way is to set up an RCI to get to the root of it,” he said, adding that PKR still has about four to five more similar allegations it is still investigating.
The controversy over NFCorp has been raging since October last year.
The 2010 Auditor-General’s Report revealed that the government had funded the cattle-breeding project called the National Feedlot Centre (NFC), but it had failed to meet its objectives.
The NFC is a project in Gemas, Negri Sembilan, aimed at boosting the production of beef to reduce beef imports.
Shahrizat has been pulled into the controversy as her husband Mohamad Salleh heads the NFCorp and their three children are directors in the company.
Opposition parties, particularly PKR, then began a series of documented exposé linking Shahrizat to allegations of abusing a RM250-million government allocation meant for the project.
Rafizi and PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamaruddin, who made a number of allegations, have been sued by Shahrizat over the claims of corruption.
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