Zaid to PM: Stop name dropping bumi to justify foolish decisions

Summary

• Zaid Ibrahim berates PM for using the bumiputera community to justify RM1.1 billion cash injection into debt-ridden Sapura Energy.

• Ex-law minister claims that whenever the government wants to justify a foolish decision, they always use bumiputera as the reason.

Former law minister Zaid Ibrahim has urged Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to quit using the bumiputera community as a tool to justify foolish decisions.

This came following the premier’s move to inject RM1.1 billion into debt-ridden Sapura Energy Bhd, justifying it by saying bumiputera vendors would be affected if it was not done.

“Stop using bumiputera as a tool. Stop being racist. Being stupid is bad enough.

“Whenever bumiputera leaders seek to justify a stupid decision, they always use bumiputera as the reason for it. It's ridiculous.

“Do you mean the prime minister will not invest in Sapura if the vendors are Chinese? So, does it become strategic only if bumiputera are involved?” Zaid asked on Facebook today.

This morning Anwar hit back at critics over the government’s decision to help Sapura Energy, stressing the funds would be exclusively used to repay vendors.

"Out of the approximately 2,000 vendors, 80 percent of them are bumiputera who had contributed (to Sapura Energy). How can they (the vendors) be punished?

"If I don't help them, they (critics) will say Anwar is a traitor (who) no longer champions the fate of bumiputera, he's just a mouthpiece for DAP.

"When we help, they say we're just helping the company, (but) I'm not saving rich tauke (tycoons), (as) every sen of the funding will go to vendors who worked, but have not been paid," Anwar said during his monthly assembly with Finance Ministry staffers in Putrajaya.

The finance minister also revealed that the firm’s top leadership had been replaced as it was one of Putrajaya’s conditions prior to channeling the RM1.1 billion into the struggling company.

‘Why vendors not paid in first place?’

On that note, Zaid questioned the government on why Sapura Energy did not pay the bumiputera vendors in the first place.

However, the former Kota Bharu MP answered his own question, saying: “Because of other bumiputera in the company looking after their (own) interest.”

Yesterday, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil denied Putrajaya was bailing out Sapura Energy but was rather making a “strategic investment”.

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