SALLEH: IF LTH WAS WRONG, WERE ALL THE OTHERS TOO?

Sabah State Speaker defends LTH-1MDB land deal saying numerous others have purchased land in KL at even more exorbitant prices.

(Free Malaysia Today) – The recent furore over Lembaga Tabung Haji’s (LTH) land purchase from 1MBD is uncalled for as many other parties have purchased prime land in downtown Kuala Lumpur for much more, said Salleh Said Keruak in his latest blog post.

The Sabah State Speaker also said the land purchase was not only limited to the land per se but included the title, planning approval and infrastructure as well.

“This is relatively cheap if compared to similar transactions concluded in the Golden Triangle,” Salleh said

He listed four separate parties who had purchased land in the city, saying that in comparison, the LTH land buy was not the “bad investment” critics of the government made it out to be.

* Malaysian Resources Corporation Berhad (MRCB) bought 1.8661 acres of German Embassy land for RM259.15 million or RM3,188 per sq ft

* SP Setia Bhd paid RM294.97million or RM2,200 per sq ft for the 1.22 ha British High Commission land in Jalan Ampang

* Oxley Holdings (M) Sdn Bhd bought 1.3 ha in Jalan Ampang for RM446.7million or RM3,300 per sq ft

* KSK Group Bhd paid RM568 million or RM3,299 per sq ft for a 1.6 ha parcel in Jalan Conlay

Based on the examples above, Salleh said, “If the issue is that Tabung Haji paid too much for the land or that it was a bad investment then this is not so, as the many other transactions around that area have proven.”

He further explained, “And the land deal was negotiated before 1MDB even became an issue and not after that.

The LTH-1MDB land deal starting dominating the news when it was revealed that the former paid a whopping RM188.5 million to 1MDB for a piece of land at the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) at RM2,774 per sq ft.

1MDB had earlier purchased 70 acres of Tun Razak Exchange development land for only RM194.1 million, prompting many critics of Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also Chairman of 1MDB’s Board of Advisors and the country’s finance minister, to label the purchase an obvious bailout.