DAP urges govt to probe Chinese bank for 'money laundering'
Referring to a series of reports by Sarawak Report on the matter, DAP publicity secretary Tony Pua said relevant authorities, especially the Finance Ministry and Bank Negara, must look into the matter because it has caused billions of ringgit in losses to Malaysian taxpayers...
DAP has urged the authorities to investigate the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC, photo above) over allegations of money laundering through Kuwaiti entities, involving a 1MDB asset.
Referring to a series of reports by Sarawak Report on the matter, DAP publicity secretary Tony Pua said relevant authorities, especially the Finance Ministry and Bank Negara, must look into the matter because it has caused billions of ringgit in losses to Malaysian taxpayers.
"If found culpable, ICBC must be penalised accordingly to ensure that no other bank will ever facilitate the laundering of misappropriated funds by a corrupt government ever again," Pua said.
Since May, Sarawak Report had published a series of reports claiming that the evidence it had received proved that the price tag of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) was inflated.
The reports alleged that the excess cash borrowed from Chinese banks was used to pay 1MDB's debt in 2016.
Malaysiakini is unable to independently verify these claims and has sought clarification from the Finance Ministry.
According to Pua (above), the Pakatan Harapan administration had discovered that 1MDB had quietly sold 234 acres of land in Air Itam, Penang, to Silk Road Southeast Asia Real Estate Ltd, a company domiciled in Cayman Islands for CNY4.25 billion (RM2.7 billion).
This company was allegedly controlled by powerful Kuwaiti individuals.
What was suspicious, said Pua, who was an officer in the Finance Ministry during the Harapan administration, was that Silk Road Southeast Asia Real Estate Ltd paid the Finance Ministry for the land, but never claimed the title.
Based on Sarawak Report's articles, the money, which in the process passed through ICBC's branch in Kuwait, was eventually used to pay UAE's International Petroleum Investment Co and other 1MDB debtors.
When contacted for clarifications, Pua said the previous administration did not have evidence to initiate action. However, the Sarawak Report exposé of the Kuwaiti connection had helped to connect the missing dots.
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