Kuala lumpur: Lembaga Tabung Haji's (TH) investment in Putrajaya Perdana Bhd (PPB) and the appointment of the then TH chairman as PPB chairman have drawn TH into the intricate dealings of 1Malaysia Development Bhd's (1MDB) transactions, resulting in a hefty RM145.3 million loss.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Dr Zulkifli Hasan revealed that Putrajaya Perdana was one of 14 problematic investments linked to losses amounting to billions of ringgit, as detailed in the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) Report on TH. Dr Zulkifli stated that TH had also acquired land at the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) from 1MDB during the height of the controversy.
Dr Zulkifli raised concerns about TH's chief executive officer also serving as a member of 1MDB's board of directors, questioning whether the investments were made in the interest of TH or to address problems faced by other parties. These remarks were made during his briefing session on the RCI Report on TH and the measures taken to restore TH's financial position, at a special sitting of the Dewan Rakyat today.
The minister pointed out that the listing of FGV Holdings, celebrated as the country's largest initial public offering (IPO) after raising over RM10 billion, later adversely affected TH when it suffered losses exceeding RM1 billion. He highlighted that despite a dramatic fall in share prices, TH continued to hold the shares, opting to adjust the impairment policy to obscure the losses.
Dr Zulkifli mentioned that with TH's improved financial standing, it had repurchased the land in TRX, which it had sold in 2018 for RM400 million, at a current market value of RM270 million. Additionally, TH reacquired the oil palm plantation of UJ Estates (Holdings) Sdn Bhd, previously sold for RM800 million, at a current market value of RM695 million this year, including RM115 million in cash, resulting in an enterprise value of approximately RM580 million.
The 211-page RCI report, released on July 29, unveiled various management and operational weaknesses within TH from 2014 to 2020. It also put forth 25 recommendations for improvement, 75 per cent of which had been executed by TH as of July 30. The government established the RCI in 2021, with members appointed on January 20, 2022, and the report was presented to the King on August 30, 2022.