DAP took Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) chairman Annuar Musa to task for the Dudley House apartments scandal and other cases of mismanagement, and called for his sacking.

 

The current controversy on the apartment purchase involves alleged kickbacks to Malaysian officials.

This not the first time Mara has found itself embroiled in allegations of corruption and fund mismanagement, said Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim ( photo ) and Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari.

 

Previous property transactions have also been controversial, including the acquisition of three properties in London, namely the Ashley Hotel near Paddington Station, student hostel Beaumont House and service apartment Atelier EC1, the DAP said in a statement today.

 

On top of these, three other buildings in Melbourne’s CBD worth about A$63.5 million (RM183 million), were reportedly purchased through offshore shelf companies, the DAP said.

 

"Meanwhile, the 2013 Auditor-General’s Report highlighted discrepancies amounting to RM124.55 million in Mara’s procurement processes.

 

"In the same year, two senior Mara officials, Mara Education Foundation CEO Abdul Shariff Hamid, who was also a former Overseas Umno Club secretary, and programme manager Zainal Rashid Zakaria, were convicted of forgery pertaining to claims amounting to RM304,650. 

 

"This year, four Mara officials were charged in the High Court in Kuala Lumour for false travel claims amounting to tens of thousands of ringgit," DAP said in the statement.

 

Blemished record

With such a blemished record, the Dudley House scandal could very well represent the tip of a 'very large iceberg', bearing in mind that Mara has invested about RM600 million in properties overseas, they said.

 

When Annuar took over the helm of the agency in 2013, he conceded that Mara had a tarnished reputation owing to many problems including rent-seeking, mismanagement and corruption.

 

Consequently, Annuar pledged to set the house in order by revamping the institution in order to shed its ‘stigma’.

 "However, after two years in the top job, it would appear that nothing much has changed," they said.

 

Their statement came in the light of the Dudley House scandal as exposed by the Australian daily The Age.

 

Mara officials were alleged to have purchased a hostel block in Melbourne at an inflated price of A$22.5 million (RM65 million), from which A$4.75 million (RM13.7 million) was creamed off as kickbacks.

 

Contradictory statements

Sim and Zairil noted Annuar seemed to make contradictory statements at a press conference yesterday. 

 

On the one hand, he said that Mara Inc’s AUD22.5 million purchase of the hostel building was a bargain.

 

On the other, he claimed to have personally highlighted serious concerns about the deal following his visit to Melbourne last year, leading to an internal investigation by Mara that apparently started two months ago, they pointed out.

 

"Does Annuar even know what he is saying? If the deal had been value for money as he alleges, then what concerns did he bring up to the council, and why was an internal investigation conducted?" they asked.

 

Annuar also involved Prime Minister Najib Razak ( photo ) in the scandal by revealing that the final green light had been given by the latter as the chairman of the National Economic Council, they asserted.

 

"Laying the blame at the prime minister’s feet sounds like nothing more than a disingenuous attempt to shirk responsibility, especially when it would never have materialised had Annuar not approved the deal it in the first place," they said.

 

"Annuar’s oxymoronic statements clearly reveals that he is either confused or incompetent.

"Either way, the Ketereh MP is clearly unfit to lead a government agency entrusted with an annual budget of RM4 billion. As such, he should be sacked as chairman of Mara with immediate effect," they declared.