SHOULD NAJIB BE LET OFF SCOT-FREE? Selling 1MDB land not enough, top TH five must quit - Muslim group

KUALA LUMPUR - Lembaga Tabung Haji (LTH) chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim and its four senior executives with links to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) should step down over its controversial Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) land purchase, the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim) said.

In a statement, Abim president Amidi Abd Manan said although LTH has agreed to sell its TRX plot next week, the move still does not change the fact that the fund had overpaid for land from debt-ridden 1MDB, which is currently under probe for impropriety.

“Abim welcomes the step (to sell the land). It’s a start in the bid to keep Tabung Haji free from any element of manipulation by 1MDB,” he said, adding that the move would also help the fund regain the confidence of its depositors on how LTH is being managed.

“But to ensure this confidence is maintained, the four top executives in LTH who are also involved in 1MDB must step down.

“This includes Abdul Azeez as the chairman of LTH who had failed to see that the purchase was above board, leading to the current dispute,” he added.

Earlier today, Abdul Azeez told a press conference that following advice from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, LTH will sell its TRX land plot by next week, just a month after buying it from 1MDB for RM188.5 million.

He added that the decision was made to “respect the sensitivities” of the rural Malay folks who had deposited their savings in the fund.

Azeez said LTH’s board of directors had initially unanimously agreed in a meeting last night to hold onto the land deal.

However, a call by Najib this morning warning against “prolonged slander” had forced its hand.

Earlier this week, reports of LTH’s controversial land investment hit the headlines after it was revealed that it paid RM188.5 million for a plot of land in the TRX, which 1MDB had purchased four years ago for just RM4.5 million at a rate of RM64 psf.

A blog called “The Benchmark” first drew attention to the purchase when it published purported documents of the controversial transaction that critics now claim could be a bailout for 1MDB.

A confirmation by LTH on the purchase has since prompted bipartisan calls from lawmakers and private groups for the pilgrim funds board to explain the “high-risk” land buy from debt-laden 1MDB, which is currently under probe by the Auditor-General’s Department and Parliament’s PAC. - Malay Mail