Nazri: Government not delaying prosecuting NFCorp

March 03, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 – Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz today denied claims the federal government was dragging its feet in prosecuting the National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) directors, insisting the police were still investigating the case.

“No. As the minister in charge of law, I assure you I know that the A-G and his chambers are doing their work. There is no such thing as delaying the process. Even if there is a delay, a decision will be made on the prosecution,” the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (picture) was quoted by Bernama as saying today in Kuala Kangsar.

CCID director Datuk Syed Ismail Syed Azizan had announced earlier this week that the police had recommended the cattle-farming company’s top executives be charged with criminal breach of trust (CBT).

“We are recommending to the Attorney-General’s Chambers that all NFCorp directors be charged,” he told The Malaysian Insider on February 25.

NFCorp, which operates the National Feedlot Centre (NFC), is chaired by federal minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s husband, Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail. Their three children also hold executive posts in the company.

It has denied CBT in its RM250 million loan agreement with the government and has accused the police of “unfairly” pre-empting the charge.

Yesterday, deputy Inspector-General of Police, Datuk Seri Khalid Abu Bakar confirmed news that the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) had sent back the investigation papers to the police, purportedly for further investigation without disclosing the details.

Nazri, who is the de facto law minister, also advised NFCorp executives from making any more statements pending police investigation.

“The (NFCorp) management should remain silent and not interfere in the police investigation or decision of the Attorney-General (AG). The company may or may not be prosecuted,” the national news agency quoted him saying.

The NFC hit the headlines after it made it into the Auditor-General’s Report last year, and has continued to hog the limelight after it was linked to Shahrizat and her family.

NFCorp has been accused repeatedly by PKR of siphoning off funds meant for the cattle-farming project and channelling them towards unrelated expenses like the purchase of several luxury condominium units in Bangsar and Singapore and land in Putrajaya as well as to fund personal umrah trips.

The company has also been accused of using part of the RM250 million government soft loan for companies owned by Shahrizat’s family members that are unrelated to the cattle-farming scheme.

Salleh told The Malaysian Insider this week the company intends to sell its beef products abroad as the local market was too small to support its intended output.

He explained that NFCorp was now building up the market in Singapore and will do the same in Indonesia as the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) was on target to produce 78,000 tonnes of beef by 2015.

The NFC, which is supervised by NFCorp, was set up in 2007 to provide food security and attain 40 per cent self-sufficiency for beef production by 2015.