'Make Penang Umno duo return profit from land sale'

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has been urged to order two Penang Umno leaders to return the RM5 million profit they had earned as brokers in the sale of a plot of land in Balik Pulau.

The plot was bought by party leaders Omar Fuadzar and Musa Sheikh Fadzir from 32 Malay landowners in Kampung Terang.

Omar is the state BN strategy implementation chief, while Musa is state Umno deputy chief. The duo are directors of Mason Height Sdn Bhd, a sister company of private developer Asean.

"While both Umno leaders have not done anything illegal, it is immoral and unprincipled of them to claim (that they prevent the erosion of) Malay land rights,” Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said in a statement today.

"Yet at the same time, (they) act as land brokers to sell Malay land for personal profit, at the expense of Malay landowners."

Lim was referring to an expose by Balik Pulau PKR division chief Abdul Halim Hussain, who claimed that the two had made a profit from selling 10 acres of land to a private company.

Abdul Halim revealed that the landowners had transferred the land to Mason Height on Jan 31 at a combined price of RM8.6 million.

The company then sold the land to Kay Pride Sdn Bhd on May 16 for RM13.5 million, making a RM5 million profit in just four months.

Lim queried if Umno leaders defend the rights of the Malay community by "profiting and benefitting at their expense".

"Up to now, both have not explained how the RM5.7 million they earned will benefit the 31 Malay landowners.

"Previously, both Umno leaders had criticised the state government for trying to take land (in order) to ‘chase the Malays out of Penang’.”

‘Umno’s racist attacks’

Lim also said Umno had criticised the state government for wanting to acquire 100 acres of land at another site in Balik Pulau to build the Asian Women Leadership University(AWLU).

He said the Penang government had been subjected to "racist attacks" by Umno even though 60 percent of  the land is owned by non-Malays and only 40 percent is in Malay hands.

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin (left) had approved the AWLU on Feb 10 as a key education project toward a high-income economy, Lim noted.

Idris Jala, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, had on June 12 requested the state government to initiate the transfer of 100 acres of land to AWLU.

"We’ve supported this initiative of setting up the first women’s university in Malaysia, as it will be run by Smith College, the top women’s university in the US," said Lim.

"After the state government managed to persuade AWLU to choose another site, the land acquisition was called off.

"This not only disabled Umno's racist attacks but proved that the state government only acquires land for public purposes, and only when there is a credible proposal from a reliable institution.”