SG BULOH – Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Sg Buloh candidate Datuk R. Ramanan has challenged his Barisan Nasional (BN) contender Khairy Jamaluddin to explain his past “controversies”.
Top on his list is the one involving financial house ECM Libra Bhd.
During a ceramah in Paya Jaras here yesterday, Ramanan brought up Khairy’s alleged involvement in some controversies.
He said the former health minister was once known as “the richest unemployed man” in the country when his father-in-law Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was prime minister.
“He should answer about his ECM Libra scandal. At RM14 million, there still has not been an explanation on the matter.”
In 2005, Khairy purchased 13 million shares from ECM Libra at a discounted RM9.2 million from three shareholders, drawing criticism and accusations of conflict of interest as Abdullah was prime minister and finance minister at the time.
During his speech, Ramanan took a jibe at Khairy as “fourth-floor boy”, in reference to when the latter was one of Abdullah’s aides who operated on a floor below the latter’s office, and who allegedly influenced decisions on various policies and administrative matters.
During the ceramah programme, Ramanan pulled no punches on Khairy in mentioning more scandals.
“His Youth and Sports Ministry scandal of RM107 million and UKSB (Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd) scandal of RM70 million has not been explained until now.”
Ramanan said voters might not remember these scandals as they were “well-hidden” from the internet.
“I am reminding you of these issues because maybe we have forgotten. I do not want to bring up the past, but we have to fight fire with fire – lest we get taken advantage of.”
Ramanan also labelled Khairy a parachute candidate who had no choice but to contest in Sg. Buloh due to problems with his party.
The PKR man added that Khairy is a minister of false promises, instead of his renowned title as the “best health minister”.
He accused Khairy of not advocating for frontliners’ rights during the lockdown period and kept mum when former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced a state of emergency.
“He really loves the Sg Buloh Hospital, he immediately made a visit there when he was chosen as a candidate here,” said Ramanan sarcastically.
“When the doctors were striking and the frontliners were crying, where was he? How could he keep quiet as a principled and progressive individual when Muhyiddin announced a state of emergency?”
Meanwhile, Ramanan also mentioned that Khairy’s heart was never for the Sg Buloh constituency and its people, pointing out Barisan Nasional’s (BN) apparent instability.
“Do you want to know how unstable they are? We look at Khairy. He was set to contest in Rembau, Kuala Pilah, Tampin, Padang Besar, Alor Gajah, and finally in Sg Buloh.
“I want you to know, he did not pick Sg Buloh. You (the audience) are not his last choice, you are his only choice.”
The Sg Buloh battle is a crowded field with five others – Pejuang’s Mohd Akmal Mohd Yusof, Perikatan Nasional’s Mohd Ghazali Md Hamin, Ahmad Jufliz Faiza of Parti Rakyat Malaysia, and independents Abdul Razak Syed Long and Nurhaslinda Basri. – The Vibes, November 7, 2022
