Bersatu man questions if Rafizi built wealth using public donations

Incumbent Batu Pahat MP Mohd Rashid Hasnon has questioned if PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli built his wealth using public donations.

In a statement today, Rashid - who had, in the past, defected from PKR to Bersatu - urged Rafizi to answer several questions on his holdings in the Invoke Solutions Sdn Bhd company, in the interest of public accountability.

“Does Rafizi agree that Invoke received public support, including through various fund-raising methods, even though he may have injected his own funds as well?

“Does Rafizi agree that Invoke’s shares are worth millions now due to public support and the publicity attendant upon the cause of fair elections? Why has he, having declared clearly in 2017 that Invoke is not meant for personal gain including shareholders, kept the massively increased value of the shares as his personal wealth?

“In keeping with his statement in 2017 that Invoke is a non-profit entity, will Rafizi execute documents to create a trust upon the shares for the public benefit or will he continue to keep the shares as his personal wealth?” questioned Rashid (above).

This comes after Rafizi filed an asset declaration ahead of his contest in the Pandan parliamentary constituency on Nov 2.

Rafizi’s Invoke

"Invoke was set up by Rafizi purportedly in the public interest. Invoke appealed and received public support by way of various methods of fund-raising," claimed Rashid.

He added that this is undeniable as further details can be found on the PKR man's website.

PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli

"It is indisputable that Invoke was built on the back of public support. The public who supported it did so because they were assured by Rafizi that Invoke existed to ensure fair elections.

“They supported it for a good cause, and not to enrich anyone. But is there any doubt that Rafizi has been enriched by Invoke?" alleged Rashid, noting that Rafizi’s holdings in the company are worth RM16.7 million now.

Rafizi previously shared that as of Oct 31, his net assets were valued at RM18,851,350. Just over RM1.1mil was in savings and EPF, while RM16.7 million was through his holdings in the Invoke Solutions Sdn Bhd company.

“Even if Rafizi does not sell or dispose of the shares anytime soon, these are millions in wealth that he now owns. The source of the wealth is the public-interest initiative, Invoke.

“He has profited, and the profit is massive. Ordinary Malaysians can only dream of earning RM16 million, even if they worked their whole lifetimes,” said the former PKR leader.

Rashid noted that the PKR deputy president has failed to state that such shares are being held on trust for utilisation through public programmes or other initiatives benefiting the public.

“It is declared as his own assets, belonging to him and part of his personal wealth. He is not stated as the nominal owner. Rafizi is the absolute beneficial owner,” he said. - Mkini