Selangor BN kicks off fresh battle against state gov't

Selangor BN launched another angle of attack against the Pakatan Rakyat state government yesterday, with a full-page, full-colour advertisement questioning the Talam Corporation Bhd debt restructuring exercise and the auditing firm KPMG's conclusions.

"The people of Selangor need a truthful explanation, not inconsistent excuses," the advertisement concludes.

Titled "Series 1: Confusion over Talam's debt collection", the advertisement was published in the Malay-language daily Sinar Harian, carrying the BN logo, the Selangor BN slogan "Love Selangor, Trust BN", and contact information for the Selangor BN people's service centre (Pakar).

When contacted, Pakar officer Budiman Zuhdi said this was done in response to a state government advertisement in the same paper on Sept 7.

A picture of the government's advertisement that featured its frequently asked questions (FAQ) on the Talam issue is included in the advertisement.

Although the text in the picture is barely legible, yesterday's advertisement reproduced some quotes from the FAQ and questioned them.

One of the three issues raised targeted the claim by the Selangor government and KPMG that all RM392 million owed by Talam had been collected.

"Based on the Bernama report dated July 12, 2012, the Selangor menteri besar announced that Menteri Besar Incorporated (MBI) has only received RM302,711,391 from Talam's overall debt.

"Page 124 of the Trinity Corporation Bhd (the company that took over Talam) 2012 annual report states some of the land in Danau, (of which about 80 percent is underwater) used for the debt settlement has been auctioned off but is still a part of the court proceedings. Therefore any land transfer to MBI is still in limbo.

"The question is, how did KMPG conclude that RM392 million has been successfully collected?" the advertisement asks under the sub-title "Confusion 2".

Trinity chairperson Tsen Keng Yam had previously said that the company would identify a new piece of land as a replacement if the case was not settled in favour of the Selangor government, and this is also stated in the same annual report.

Asked about this, Budiman said there were several more advertisements on the Talam issue that would be run and these would address points that were considered "wrong or misleading", though he declined to reveal the exact number.

However, if the Selangor government raises other issues in its advertisements, Pakar would rebut these as well through its advertisements, he added.