Rafizi: NexG more than just corporate drama, business dispute

The controversies engulfing NexG Bhd are more than just a business dispute or money-driven corporate drama, said Rafizi Ramli.

“The reality is, the issue is far bigger than that,” the former economy minister emphasised in a social media post.

Rafizi pointed out that NexG is related to matters that are highly strategic to the country - MyKad, passports, and migrant worker documents.

He added that this included all forms of official identification ultimately used in banking, government affairs, and even voting.

“When a company sits at the centre of a nation’s identity system, controlling it is no longer just about owning a corporate entity. It means holding something far more significant.

“That is why this issue cannot be read as merely a story about shares,” he noted.

READ MORE: Rafizi: NexG tussle shows why MyKad, passport contracts should be govt-run

Rafizi said what is more disconcerting is when strategic assets like this become the subject of competition among vested interest groups.

“That is a sign that the problem is not about one or two individuals. The real problem lies in a system that allows such a situation to happen,” the Pandan MP added.

Boardroom tussle

NexG is a company that holds RM2.4 billion in government contracts to supply national identification cards and passports, with HeiTech Padu Bhd undertaking similar work, such as the development and deployment of the National Integrated Immigration System.

The two companies have been linked to the “corporate mafia” scandal first reported by Bloomberg.

READ MORE: MACC colluded with businesspersons to strong-arm rivals: Bloomberg

On March 10, NexG founder Abu Hanifah Noordin claimed that his suspension as the company’s executive chairperson and CEO was because he had tried to protect NexG from “being robbed in daylight”.

Subsequently, businessperson Victor Chin, in a 40-page document released on March 24, detailed a chronology of events depicting him and his business partners in NexG facing threats and intimidation in a bid to “hijack” the public-listed IT solutions provider.

Three days later, Bernama reported that NexG had announced a new leadership structure, in which businessperson Ishak Ismail was designated as executive chairperson, while Hanifah was redesignated as deputy executive chairperson and group chief executive officer.

As of March 11, Ishak’s sons control Raya Aviation Holdings, which owns a 20.4 percent stake in NexG, making it the largest shareholder.

Ishak was a known associate of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in the 1990s. However, Anwar has claimed the two had drifted apart after 1998.

In 2014, former foreign minister Anifah Aman alleged in court that Anwar had used Ishak as an intermediary to offer bribes for the then-Kimanis MP to defect and topple the BN government after the 2008 general election. Both Anwar and Ishak denied the allegations.

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