The government could be hit with another series of "explosive leaks” if it only targets businessperson Victor Chin over the “corporate mafia” allegations, warns Rafizi Ramli.
Speaking on a podcast last night, the Pandan MP said he believed Chin probably keeps records and proof of all transactions he made in the course of his business, just like businessperson Albert Tei did in the Sabah mining corruption scandal.
"...it looks like there is a tendency that (authorities' investigation) is only focused on making Chin a scapegoat (in the corporate mafia scandal).
"So, I would like to advise those in Putrajaya, those in the close circles of (Prime Minister) Anwar Ibrahim, Bukit Aman, and MACC: you should be careful.
"There is a high possibility that Chin has all the evidence in his safekeeping, so if you go after him and only target him to make him a scapegoat, he might reveal them all.
"I mean all... who he has met, what was discussed. For all we know, he might have recorded all (the discussions)," he said during the “Yang Berhenti Menteri” podcast session, which was aired on YouTube.
Last Friday, the police raided Chin’s properties at Sungai Long and Kemensah, Selangor, in connection with their probe into the “corporate mafia” scandal.
According to StarBiz, authorities seized items from the properties, including two cars, luxury watches, jewellery, cash in local and foreign currencies, as well as several documents.
Following this, Chin questioned why investigations are focused on him instead of those who deserve scrutiny, and warned that he will not "remain silent" should pressure escalate against him and his family.
According to Rafizi, a corporate adviser like Chin is only part of the "ecosystem", but authorities are allegedly trying to make the "corporate mafia" all about the man.
He questioned why the authorities are not going after other names mentioned by Bloomberg in its exposé about the scandal last month.
Corporate takeovers
Last month, Bloomberg named Chin as part of a network of businesspeople who allegedly colluded with the MACC to stage corporate takeovers of rivals.
The report detailed a tactic in which a group of businesspersons would target a company, then file MACC complaints against it.
MACC would then investigate the company’s founders, exerting pressure that enabled the complainants to gain control of the firm.
The anti-graft agency has since denied the allegations levelled against them.
Despite pressure to establish a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) to scrutinise the allegations, the cabinet last week instructed law enforcement agencies; including the police, MACC, the Inland Revenue Board and Securities Commission to investigate the matter.
‘Cops also involved’
During the podcast, Rafizi claimed that the police were also involved in the alleged “corporate mafia”.
He accused the law enforcement agency of colluding with businessperson Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak in an alleged attempt by the latter and "his group" to take over NexG Berhad.
NexG is a key technology and security solutions company for Putrajaya and holds billions in government contracts.
According to Rafizi, the police's Anti-Money Laundering Unit had allegedly frozen a trading account of a company that held a significant amount of shares in NexG before instructing a transfer of the shares to another company.
The transfer was allegedly done without the knowledge and consent of the shareholder, Rafizi claimed.
"The amount involved was about RM60 million. Then, it was alleged that the shareholder was forced to sign (a document) saying that he had willingly transferred the shares.
"I have seen the evidence of this," he claimed.
Malaysiakini has reached out to Farhash and Bukit Aman for their response to the allegations.
For the record, Farhash has previously denied a news report alleging him to be involved in the supposed attempt to take over NexG.
The former political secretary to Anwar also issued a letter of demand to Channel News Asia over the allegation. - Mkini
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