Taek Jho Low, billionaire at age 28/29?

Before you read further, take a look at an UMNO blog that talks about this Low and how he came into the billions. Enjoy... (or, rather cry at the wanton wastage of public funds)

Note: The article below by akmongkol AK47 is dated Monday 14th Dec, 2009. Then, look at the next article, dated 15th July, 2010. Will MACC investigate? The general public and those in the know will hope so but personally, there's no chance in hell that MACC will. Too many worms in the can, la. Aiyooo...


===start===

Monday, 14 December 2009

Who is minding the Store?

Who is minding the store?

We haven't heard of the 1 Malaysia Development Fund nowadays. Yes, I am referring to the RM5 billion that is managed by the 1 Malaysia Development Board 1MDB. Yes, it's that Fund formerly known as Terengganu Sovereign Wealth Fund. Just who came up with the idea is uncertain. Rumors have it, that it was a young man called Mr. Low from Penang. Mr Joe Low.

Creative ideas are most welcome. PM Najib has said that creativity will be a main element in his coming economic model. Anyway, the Fund started with RM 1 billion. It later became RM 5 billion obtained through the issue of bonds guaranteed by the government. Normally an entity is allowed to issue bonds if it is rated highly by some credit evaluating bodies. Like Moody's Investor Services for example. The accreditation body is satisfied the bond issuing entity can repay the bonds when they mature.

There are cases too, when the bond issue is underwritten by GOD- government of the day. Governments of course can never go bankrupt. The 1 Malaysia Development Fund- just call it the 1 Malaysia Fund will get additional RM 6 billion when the oil royalties due to Terengganu will also be directed into it. This means it will have RM 11 billion war chest to play around with.

Just who are controlling the 1 Malaysia Fund? We know it reports directly to the PM. Although 1MDB reports directly to the Prime Minister, the sovereign fund will still have an eight-member board of advisors and a five-member board of directors.8 + 5= 13 members.

But will they be given a free hand to manage the fund? Or are they there just to grace the window? These people are drawn mainly from statutory bodies such as LTAT, Tabung Haji, FELDA etc. I have been informed some have already resigned from the board because they cannot stand excessive meddling.

But you retort- why should we tell you what we are doing? Especially to busy bodies like you people? Then we answer you- because we have been dismayed so many times when public money is treated as a private property. We have PKFZ which is the subject of intensive forensic investigation now and has become a public scandal. We are also disturbed by the customary practice of keeping everything very quiet until it becomes bad and blows off the lid. Most importantly we believed that public disclosure is the best form of accountability. Let it out in the raw and let the people judge. Some of the busybodies out there are pretty smart and perceptive.

The sovereign fund is said to be thought of by a character called Low. He is known among financial circles as Joe Low. He comes from Penang. He takes over where Patrick Lim left. I can imagine him say over a glass of Martini- hi, my name is Low. Joe Low. I prefer my drink shaken, not stirred.

He brought the idea of creating a sovereign wealth fund. It was probably meant as a solution to prevent the dissipation of Terengganu's Oil Royalties.

Now, this is another issue. Why did the TSWF- Terengganu Sovereign Wealth Fund suddenly become 1Malaysia Fund? HM The King seemed to have given his consent to the renamed entity. This federal wealth fund now takes over the money raised by KTIA headed by Shahrol Halmi. HM The King was very much interested when the TSWF was set up as he was royally chagrined over the usage of oil royalties due to Terengganu.

Because I think it's not safe to have the money parked in Terengganu. Warring factions in Terengganu will be fighting all over the place to gain control over the Fund. He must have realized that the previous state government spent the money frivolously. A lot too went missing and unaccountable. Even if the monies are placed under KTIA- meddling politicians can still make life for the managers miserable. And also perhaps, it is wiser to have the money under a federal entity because Mr. Low thinks; BN will not be the next state government.

Anyway- some other states may be thinking to set up their own SWF. Then they will ask the government to guarantee them. If you can do it to Terengganu, you most certainly can and must do for other states.

PM says, if these jokers come up with these equally creative ideas, his government will have nothing to do but issue guarantees and commit resources to ensure the fund is managed properly. He can't afford to, because the majority of his officers in the Treasury are more at home at eating kuacis ( eagle brand preferred) and chewing on chips at meetings. No way Jose, he says- let's have a Federal Sovereign wealth fund. And it's not Jose- its Joe. Joe Low that is.

We are not sure where this Low brought the idea to. To the PM or to his Majesty the King.

He probably brought the idea to both. As both his majesty and the PM are concern about the application of the oil royalties, it is logical that Low brought the idea to both. He goes over to the PM and tells PM, the King has sent him. He then goes over to see the King and says, PM sends him. Nice. Very nice.

I mean, it's not every day, HM the King calls up- Yo DSN, did you send Low over to me to speak on this and that? It's not every day PM calls up the King to say- A thousand pardons Your Majesty- did Your Majesty sent this sinkeh over?

This brings us to the interesting question- just who the heck is this Joe Low? Is he our Warren Buffet? The main stream media says he is a low key person. Well, after he splashed USD170k to fete the PM and his entourage in New York recently, he is not low-key any longer. He is a Big Key now. Which doors is he opening? And last week, he gave a private birthday party to the PM's wife at a leading hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Much has been written about the merits of a SWF as a concept. I shall not repeat the observations made by many commentators. For example the Blogger Analyst at Large has written something noteworthy about this. Forget the fact that he doubles up as economic advisor for the DAP. He has raised cogent criticisms which deserve notice.

I am more concern about the shadowy group of young boys moving behind the scenes and appear to exert considerable influence on the PM. Most prominent is this Joe Low character.

We have seen the debilitating effects such intrusion and meddling on the morale of the officers and the damage caused to the previous PM. He was criticized by being overly compliant with the investment advice of one Patrick Lim. And the treasury people and even ministers were run over roughshod by a group of young highly educated boys infamously known as the 4^th Floor boys.

Now and here, we have another shadowy group. Maybe it's not formal. But not less significant. Among them are Joe Low, one young Indian, and the son of a prominent Chinese tycoon. All of them are young and are said to be have unhindered access to the PM's wife.

They are said to have even attended briefings by treasury and Bank Officials. We need to recognize the dangers from the experience of the previous administration.

Obtrusive and incessant meddling into the running and management of the Funds can see our money being dissipated. Already at the inception of the 1 Malaysian Fund, RM 300 million has already leaked. For what purpose? To where?

If credible investments have not been made on account of meddling, we shall have to incur the payment of interest. That means our borrowed capital has not work to earn revenue from which to service interests let alone earn a conservative return of 5%. (That was what Sharol Halmi said) and I hope, this conservative expectation on returns is still adopted by the board members.

Some board members have left or resigned. They say this fund is too hot to handle. It could actually be, they saw the writings on the wall and could see where the Fund could end up. So, rather than being held accountable for something that will eventually be bad, better relinquish the honor of serving in that Fund.

The other cause of concern is why is the PM hesitant to exercise full control over the Fund? I mean, not personally but investing the board with total and unfettered discretion. Let the fund be answerable to Parliament.

Posted by sakmongkol AK47 at 11:06 AM
source: http://sakmongkol.blogspot.com/2009/12/who-is-minding-store.html

=== end ===

PARIS HILTON STRIKES A POSE FOR MALAYSIAN MILLIONAIRE

Dated: 15th July, 2010

Always one to welcome the camera, Paris Hilton took part in a mini photo shoot on a boat in Paris, France today (July 15).

The 29-year-old heiress was wearing a bright pink dress with a large diamond snake bracelet, tights and high heels as she posed for a photographer on the water with the Eiffel tower as a background.

Paris was spending the day on the boat with her sister Nicky Hilton and Malaysian millionaire Taek Jho Low.

Low is somewhat of a mystery man who has been spending a massive amount of cash at clubs around the world and is rumoured to be an adviser to some international corporations and then appointed to the board of Malaysian bank UBG Berhad last year.

source: http://www.fadedyouthblog.com/197536/paris-hilton-strikes-a-pose-for-malaysian-millionaire

Jho Low: Manhattan's Mysterious Big-Spending Party Boy

Everyone's taking notice of a rich guy who's apparently trying to single-handedly save the nightlife industry and give leggy models everywhere something to do. His name is Taek Jho Low, a 20-something Wharton grad who loves Cristal.

Not much is known about the baby-faced Malaysian, but tales of his largess are swirling about and frequently as he has been dropping tens of thousands of dollars at hot spots around the city. Here's what we know:

Name: Take Jho Low
Age: 28
Occupation: Officially he is an adviser to some international corporations, but no one knows what that means or seems to believe that is the truth. People say he's involved in oil, gas, and construction. He and was appointed to the board of Malaysian bank UBG Berhad last year. It's rumored that he's an arms dealer.
Residence: Rents several apartments in the Park Imperial on West 57th St in midtown that house him and his staff—including several body guards. Famous neighbors include Daniel Craig and Sean Combs.
Motorcade: Travels about town with his entourage in a fleet of Escalades.
Nightclub Spending:

• Spent $160,000 in one night at Avenue this September during Fashion Week.
• Routinely spends between $50,000 and $60,000 at Pink Elephant.
• Bought Lindsay Lohan 23 bottles of Cristal at 1OAK when she was celebrating her 23rd birthday.

Birthday Party:

• Just celebrated his 28th year starting last Wednesday with a four-day bash at Ceasar's Palace in Las Vegas.
• Megan Fox was flown out to Vegas to hang out with the birthday boy, who routinely surrounds himself with models.
• The hotel pool was surrounded by caged lions and tigers and filled with girls in bikinis. Later, at a nightclub, Low bought 120 bottles of Cristal for the revelers.
• Jamie Foxx gave him a red sports car for a present.
• Paris Hilton and Usher also attended the party.

Supposed Benefactor: Kuwaiti Hamad Alwazzan
Champagne of Choice: Cristal, which he'll buy for anyone who asks.
Quote: "A Jho Low comes around once in a lifetime," one nightlife insider told Page Six about the man's big-spending ways.

source: http://gawker.com/5401369/jho-low-manhattans-mysterious-big+spending-party-boy

PM's Dept cost RM4billion a year!!!

KNNCCB!!!

When the biggest private employer Matsushita was in Malaysia during it's heydays, they employed like 30, 000. And, they are making money. Here, we have PM's dept making money... but, for whom?

Anyway, the ratio is not right. Perhaps, it's right for the powers-that-be?

May God bless Malaysia. Sigh....

=== quote===

DAP MP slams 'bloated' RM4b PM's Dept

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:53

By Syed Jaymal Zahiid

KUALA LUMPUR: Calls for stringent and frugal spending amid a high budget deficit might seem like a self-embarrassing slogan given that almost RM4 billion is allocated for the Prime Minister's Department (JPM) for this year alone, said a DAP leader today.

The figure was given by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Abdul Aziz, in a written reply, to Taiping DAP MP Nga Kor Ming today.

The minister also stated that the number of its civil servants has doubled from 21,000 in 2003 to 43,000 this year.

The reason for the bloating allocation, said Nazri, was due to the establishment of several new agencies such as the Judges Appointment Commission Secretariat, Secretariat Office to former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the Performance and Implementation Unit or Pemandu.

Several existing agencies like the National Security Council, the National Islamic Development Department (Jakim) and Early Childhood Education Unit (Permata) - a unit supervised by Rosmah Mansor, the wife of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak - also saw additions in posts which explains the increase in spending.

Pakatan needed only 7,000 to run state

However, Nga criticised the allocation as wasteful amid the government's burgeoning debt which stood at more than RM350 billion in 2009.

The Taiping MP said the number of civil servants needed for the entire Perak government, when it was run by Pakatan Rakyat, was only slightly more than 7,000.

"This is ridiculous. How come you only need that number to run Perak and such a big number of staff just to operate the JPM. In the end, the taxpayers are the ones bearing the cost," he said.

He also pointed out that Taiwan, with a population of 28 million people, a million more than Malaysia, has only 20 cabinet members while Malaysia has 30.

The Najib administration has come under criticism over its hefty operational costs which stood at close to RM155 billion or 75 percent of the total 2009 budget. It increased to more than five percent for 2010.

It was slapped with further setbacks after growing debt had forced the government to dismantle its subsidies on fuel and essential goods amid public outrage that government operational expenditures ballooned drastically.

Fearing voters backlash, the Barisan Nasional government is forced to phase out its subsidy cuts plan.

source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/barisan-nasional/8006-dap-mp-slams-bloated-rm4b-pms-dept

F1 Silverstone @ BBC1 digital TV, Live

Here am I in UK, watching F1, live on public TV. It's FREE unlike Malangsial where Arsethrow is holding M'sians at ransom for live telecast. This programme actually started at 12.10pm, 50 minutes before the race starts, with the commentators (Martin Brundle, Eddie Jordon, David Coultard and ???) on a walkabout in the pits and track, interviewing the drivers and their teams. Sir Patrick Stewart was also interviewed. If you don't know, Sir Patrick is the captain of the spaceship, Enterprise, as in Star Trek. Anyway, there were flashbacks, etc. Interesting!

Here's the best part... there were no advertisement at all during the whole duration, before and after the race commentaries and interviews. This surely memalukan Ananda Con-da. Shame on you.

Below is the wasteful participation of M'sia in the F1, as found in Wikipedia. I'm pretty sure that there's more $$ that meet the eye. Sigh... why can't this $$$ be spent to help the unfortunate M'sians? It was mentioned by Martin Brundle in this race that Red Bull spent a few million Euros for this season. Aiyoyo...

=== Lotus involvement 2010===

Lotus (2010-)

Heikki Kovalainen driving the Lotus T127 at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix, March 2010.

The new Lotus team made its début in 2010. It is formally from Malaysia but still has a livery dominated by British racing green, like the old Lotus team had for many years.

Year	Main colour(s)	Additional colour(s)	Livery sponsor(s)	Additional major sponsor(s)
2010[23]	British racing green	Gold, White	Tune Group	1 Malaysia, Naza Group, Bridgestone, Proton, PACT, CNN[24]

===Petronas and Mercedes 2010===

Mercedes will compete in Formula One from 2010 after having purchased the Brawn GP team on November 16, 2009. On December 21, 2009 it signed a €30 million per season contract with Petronas as title sponsor.^[30] On January 25, 2010 Mercedes GP unveiled the car livery for the 2010 season.^[31] The blueish green livery color of Petronas is just present as fine lines at the side of the car, which overall is mainly painted in silver like the old time Mercedes race cars of the 1930s and 1950s.

Year	Main colour	Additional colours	Main sponsor	Additional major sponsors
2010[32]	Silver	Black, Green	Petronas	Bridgestone, Aabar Investments, MIG, Henri Lloyd, Graham

Karl Kling at the wheel of the W196 at Nürburgring.

Michael Schumacher testing for Mercedes GP at Jerez, February 2010.

===Air Asia and Williams 2010===

2010[72]

Blue

White

RBS, Phillips

AT&T, Allianz, Randstad, Oris, HELL energy drink, Accenture, Thomson Reuters, Air Asia

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_One_sponsorship_liveries

FARK!!! It's happening again. $$$ wasted.

Is it really necessary? Didn't the powers-that-be ever learn anything? Or, are they illiterate as not being able to read the papers? Or, are they that non-caring to ignore the hardship faced by the hardcore poor? Or, is there a hidden agenda to spend that ludicrous amount for some shiok sendiri project?

Damn.... let those developed countries spend the $$$. They can well afford it. Then, we learn from their experiences and perhaps, we can be better off e.g. the Japanese car industry.

RM120 million can build 4,800 houses in the kampongs @ RM25K each.

KNNCCB!!!

===

Published: Sunday July 11, 2010 MYT 12:46:00 PM

National space programme will continue

LABUAN: The national space programme will be continued in the middle of the 10th Malaysia Plan, said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili.

He said a decision on this had been taken and the funds would be made available for it.

He told reporters after opening the Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan Youth Creativity and Innovation Programme here Saturday.

He added that a total of RM120mil had been spent on Malaysia’s space programme thus far, the highlight of which was Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha becoming the country’s first astronaut.

He spent 10 days at the International Space Station in October 2007. — Bernama

source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/11/nation/20100711125347&sec=nation

Aiyoyo... aren't the connected ashamed?

Here we are, especially the well-connected and millionaires, they should be reading the below article and then do something about the hardcore poor. Of hand, I could think of a few wastage by the govt i.e. the new RM800 million palace, the RM billion in sponsoring F1, PKFZ, submarine that won't submerge, etc...

Aiyoooo.... please, lar. Do something!!! There are thousands more like the below:

===

Saturday July 10, 2010

Family of 20 living in one small flat

By LEE YEN MUN
yenmun@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: Unlike the homeless, they have a roof over their heads; but the poverty of the household of 20 was apparent.

The family live in a small, cramped low-cost flat with second-hand worn-out sofas, an old television that was a gift from a relative, and mattresses that have turned yellow.

When visited by an enumerator from the Statistics Department during the census exercise at their home in Desa Mentari near Kampung Medan here yesterday, third child 29-year-old Mariama’s first response was, “Dari kebajikan?”

Big household: Norlini recording information about family in their Desa Mentari flat.

She gave a small smile of embarrassment when she was told by census officer Norlini Abu Bakar, 22, that she was not from the Welfare Department.

When interviewed by The Star, Mariama said that in her family of seven adults, only three had jobs; two were lorry drivers and one a part-time labourer.

The family’s 47-year-old matron, who was not at home during the visit, works as a cleaner and receives RM300 monthly from the Welfare Department “as she is asthmatic and sickly”, Mariama, the homemaker said.

There were 13 children under 12 years of age living in the unit and all study at SK Vivekananda.

At night, 10 of them sleep in the master bedroom and the rest share the living room space, using mattresses or clothes as bedding.

Norlini said an average of 15 minutes is needed to interview each household.

“Some have been reluctant to respond, mostly due to the language barrier and misconception that I may be a door-to-door salesperson,” she said.

The fifth national population census will be conducted over six weeks until Aug 22.

source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/10/nation/6633092&sec=nation

More proof that BN component parties report to UMNO

Well, what can I say? If one reads carefully,

"He also hoped that Barisan Nasional (BN) component party members such as MCA and MIC who have supported legalised sports betting to accept the government's decision."

The government's decision in this case means UMNO supreme council. Here's the statement:

"After taking into account various views, we are of the opinion that the majority did not agree the decision to issue the licence to Ascot Sports," he said after chairing the Umno supreme council meeting here.

Anyway, there's no way any country can stop illegal gambling. The best way is to legalize it but it must be executed without fear or favour. Perhaps, our government can take a drive down south to the 'little red dot' and see how they manage it. Giving out license to just 1 man, Vincent Tan, is beyond any layman's comprehension on why is that so. It just raises more question than answers.

I think I'd better stop commenting else, I may suffer a stroke and die. Tata for now...

==========================================

Najib says no to football betting licence

UPDATED @ 06:32:31 PM 26-06-2010

By Adib Zalkapli

June 25, 2010

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak capitulated to popular public opinion tonight when he announced the government will not issue a football betting licence, weeks after tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan said his Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd had received approval for an old licence.

"After taking into account various views, we are of the opinion that the majority did not agree the decision to issue the licence to Ascot Sports," he said after chairing the Umno supreme council meeting here.

"The government therefore decided that the licence will not be issued," said the finance minister adding that Ascot Sports has been informed of the decision.

He said the withdrawal was supported by members of the Umno supreme council.

Najib said the government had earlier agreed to issue the sports betting licence but with strict condition such as banning Muslim involvement in the activity.

On whether Ascot Sports would be compensated Najib said there is no such requirement in the law.

"Under the act, the minister of finance can withdraw anytime," said Najib, declining to say when the decision was made.

He also hoped that Barisan Nasional (BN) component party members such as MCA and MIC who have supported legalised sports betting to accept the government's decision.

Several Barisan Nasional (BN) parties had supported the move but Umno Johor, Perak and Youth wing opposed the licence saying the social cost outweighed the possible tax revenue.

Tan's listed Berjaya Corporation Berhad had announced the approval in a filing to Bursa Malaysia last May 12 but Najib denied it in Parliament on June 7.

Pakatan Rakyat governments in Penang, Selangor and Kedah said they will not approve business licences for football betting although Tan said he will try to persuade them.

He had promised to donate the RM525 million for his share of Ascot Sports sold to Berjaya Corp to his own charity, Better Malaysia Foundation.

Apart from saying that football bets will be offered through the telephone and available at 220 out of the 680 Sports Toto outlets which are not Muslim majority areas, Tan said operations would begin after the current Fifa World Cup 2010 in South Africa.

PAS Youth chief Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi claimed two weeks ago that Ascot Sports will offer betting services for four major leagues — the English Premier League, the Italian league, as well as the Spanish and German leagues.

Nasrudin said that the sports betting company could not prepare itself to serve the World Cup because it was “too soon”.

PAS had also vowed to mobilise Malaysians to join its “100,000 march” to the Istana Negara this July 3 in protest over the Najib administration’s legalisation of sports-betting.

DAP’s Tony Pua claimed earlier this week to have documents to show companies controlled by Tan were proceeding with plans to start offering football betting by August and were raising RM800 million to finance operations.

The Petaling Jaya Utara MP told reporters in Parliament that on June 11, four days after the Finance Ministry had denied issuing any licence for football betting, Berjaya Sports Toto had issued an “information memorandum” detailing financing arrangements to raise RM800 million in loans for a period of ten years to finance its new business.

Berjaya Sports Toto is a subsidiary of Berjaya Corporation, and currently operates numbers forecast betting shops in peninsular Malaysia.

According to documents obtained by Pua, the principal adviser for the financing arrangements was Maybank Investment Bank Sdn Bhd, and lead manager AmInvestment Bank Berhad.

“They repeated the statement that Ascot Sports had been given approval for the reissuance of licence to carry out sports betting operations upon certain terms and conditions.

“They reiterated they have received approval. They stated that initially 220 of the Sports Toto outlets will be used as distribution points with expansion plans to accommodate more Sports Toto outlets in the future. The implementation was to be carried out in August or early September, in time for the EPL (English Premier League),” said Pua.

Another document produced by Pua was a credit analysis by MARC (Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad) on Berjaya Sports Toto.

A rating agency is usually needed to determine the “quality” of a loan.

The MARC report states that “the timeframe for the rollout of the sports betting games are yet to be finalised.”

“MARC has assigned AA- rating to this exercise to raise money by Berjaya Sports Toto and among the contributory factors to the AA-rating is stated on page 4, under recent development following a recent announcement (that it is) yet to be finalised.

“Basically, what we see is that the approval has been given, but the actual licence has not been given.

“As Finance Minister, Najib needs to rectify this... It has now become a stupid play of words,” said Pua.

source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/najib-says-no-to-football-betting-licence/

Kesian our PM. He's got memory loss, liao.

Now, I'm getting worried 'cos our beloved Prime Minister and I are of the same age. Anyway, to help him, I'll post his famous speech as shown in the below You Tube. Perhaps, it'll help his brain cells to rejuvenate 'cos the below article is very embarrassing to a person of his stature. Kesian....

===

Vote buying: Najib’s blatant denial amuses opposition

Fri, 25 Jun 2010 11:54

By FMT Staff

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s statement in Parliament that the federal government “never promised voters programmes or projects during the by-elections, including the Sibu by-election," has tickled the opposition.

“He is a habitual liar. He is always twisting his words,” said Kuala Langat parliamentarian Abdullah Sani.

“It’s a habit with Najib that goes way back. When you read his comments it sounds quite funny.”

In a written response to Sibu MP Wong Ho Leng (DAP)’s question on Wednesday, the Prime Minister’s Department, while denying it had used development projects to woo voters during the Sibu by-election, admitted that it had approved 107 projects worth RM37.7 million during the campaigning period.

Wong had asked the government how much it had spent on the Sibu by-election.

"The programmes or projects approved were planned prior to the by-election, similar to other parliamentary or state constituencies throughout the nation," the response from the PM’s Department read.

Commenting on the statement, an amused Klang MP Charles Santiago said: “The people won’t buy that!”

“The public won’t easily accept Najib’s statement because the video clip on his controversial offer is now common knowledge. They won’t buy his denial.

“Besides it’s not just Sibu and the by-election in Hulu Selangor. Najib has been making pledges everywhere … he suddenly approved RM3million for Chinese schools (in Sibu) with a condition that their candidate must win in the polls.”

Santiago was referring to the video clip on Youtube where Najib had, on the eve of the hotly contested Sibu parliamentary seat by-election last month, openly offered Rajang park residents RM5million for flood mitigations if they voted his candidate Robert Lau May 16.

However Barisan Nasional, which held the Sibu parliamentary seat for a quarter century, lost it to DAP in a tightly fought race on May 16. BN polled 18,447 to DAP’s 18,845.

source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/barisan-nasional/7249-vote-buying-najibs-blatant-denial-amuses-opposition

===

malaysiakini | May 15, 2010 | 7:05

Najib declares SUPP candidate Robert Lau Jr as the BN's "fighting cock".

"He is our young fighting cock. He can work anywhere in the world, but he told me that Sibu has been good to his family.

"He said they owe a debt to Sibu, and that is why he is offering himself as candidate for Sibu.

"I stand by Robert Lau Jr and no one else. When he stands, he speaks for Sibu and he has my ear as prime minister," he said.

Najib promises to sign a cheque of RM5 million to resolve flood woes in Rejang Park if BN candidate Robert Lau wins.

"Let's make a deal. If you deliver me Robert Lau Jr on Sunday, I will sign the cheque on Monday," he said to a spirited response from the 1,000-odd crowd.

Shot & Edited by Maran Perianen