THE Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4 Centre) lauds the unanimous decision made by the Court of Appeal with regard to the Taman Rimba Kiara case, where the development order for the project was considered null and void.
This verdict vindicates our long-standing, detailed research and advocacy work, as well as that of the affected communities in raising serious concerns of conflict of interest, planning irregularities and blatant power abuse, all of which were dismissed or shunned by those in power.
This landmark decision today by the appellate court has driven home pivotal principles in planning law and has laid bare the violations of the joint venture of Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan and Memang Perkasa Sdn Bhd in 2017.
However, this is just the tip of the iceberg with regard to dubious deals by the Federal Territories minister then, Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor (Ku Nan), who was recently convicted over a RM2 million bribery case while granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) in another RM1 million graft case.
Ku Nan was also linked to the Pavilion Genting Highlands project through a series of amazing coincidences, despite his denials of any improper dealings. Tadmansori Holdings, a company owned by Ku Nan, secured 20% effective ownership of Sering Manis, the project company of the Pavilion Genting Highlands project. It should also be noted that his brother, Tengku Rethwan, was also appointed a director of Sering Manis.
It bears reminding that it was under Ku Nan’s time that the Taman Rimba Kiara case, the elevated Bangsar-Damansara highway and 64 other dubious land deals took place. As such, his involvement and role in these cases must be investigated further.
With this, C4 Centre congratulates the community and their lawyers who bravely fought for Taman Rimba Kiara to remain a green recreational park.
We call for the MACC to expedite investigations into Ku Nan’s RM1 million DNAA graft case, as well as his involvement in various mega projects and land deals.
It is imperative that the momentum gained in this victory against conflict of interest, power abuse and corruption be carried through other cases, and that development must be sustainable to benefit the Malaysian people. – The Vibes, January 28, 2021
C4 Centre is an independent non-profit policy advocacy group dedicated to upholding good governance
