DNB is not the same as 1MDB - deputy finance minister

PARLIAMENT | Deputy Finance Minister II Yamani Hafez Musa (above) has said that Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) – which is in charge of the 5G network rollout in the country – is not the same as the beleaguered 1MDB.

He was responding to opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (Pakatan Harapan-Port Dickson) who had warned that DNB could end up like 1MDB as the approval of the 5G network rollout under DNB was “shrouded in secrecy”.

“I want to stress here that DNB and 1MDB are different matters. DNB’s tender process was structured by Ernst & Young, an independent professional firm, in accordance with international standards.

“Goldman Sachs did not undergo open tender. They were directly appointed to raise bonds (for 1MDB). There is a big difference,” Yamani said during the question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Earlier, Yamani said DNB has estimated that a further RM1.5 billion is required for additional infrastructure on top of the RM11 billion contract awarded to Ericsson.

As such, the 5G network rollout is estimated to cost about RM12.5 billion, he said.

However, Anwar had criticised this reply, saying they wanted definitive answers in Parliament.

He questioned the actual cost of the 5G network rollout as there have been differing estimates ranging from RM15 billion to RM20 billion.

“I do not believe it is RM12 billion. This is just putting a low number for the sake of not being too shocking,” Anwar said.

He also questioned who was involved with the contract as well as those who received commissions from it.

“If we do not learn from 1MDB, we will never learn,” Anwar said.

Though the opposition leader continued to push Yamani to reveal the total cost of the project, Yamani sidestepped the question and stressed that DNB is not the same as 1MDB.

Anwar had previously also demanded more transparency behind DNB’s award of Ericsson’s 5G network contract.

It was earlier reported that the government had estimated the 5G network contract to cost around RM15 billion.

DNB later chose to award the 5G network contract to Ericsson with a cost of RM11 billion after undergoing an open tender process. - Mkini