KDEB paid for flight tickets of Balkis members to go souvenier shopping

SHAH ALAM : Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Bhd (KDEB) paid for the flight tickets of seven members of the now defunct Selangor assemblymen and MPs wives charity organisation (Balkis) for a “souvenier shopping” trip to Guangzhou, China on May 2007. The cost of flight tickets for one business class and six economy class seats was RM17,438, KDEB head Datuk Abdul Karim Munisar told the Select Committee on Competance, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) of the Selangor State Assembly on the first day of its probe into contributions disbursed to Balkis. Abdul Karim said the company paid more than RM206,000 for the souvenirs from China which included a few hundred stalks of artificial flowers in various colours and 2,700 hats – 900 in red, yellow and purple colours respectively. This was despite the fact that the invoice indicates that the supplier has a local branch based in Kuala Lumpur. The entire cost was absorbed by KDEB which is a state investment arm under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. Abdul Karim added that KDEB had spent a total RM65,300 to buy Songket material to be given as gifts to the Sultan, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed and Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali at a function hosted by Balkis in February 2006 and about RM25,000 for souvenir chocolates. The company also paid RM100,000 for dinner organised by Balkis at the Sunway Lagoon Resort and Spa Hotel on July 24, 2007. This was a week before the association co-hosted three dinners costing RM450,000. The first two dinners on Aug 2 and 3 were held at the same venue and the third on Aug 4 was held at the Sunway Lagoon Theme Park hotel. The cost was borne by the state government with the approval of the financial officer and endorsement of the executive council (exco). Datuk Abdul Karim Munisar Grilled by the Selcat which is chaired by Selangor state assembly speaker Teng Chang Khim on Monday over these payments KDEB made under its CSR programme president Karim Munisar said: “We do not question the relevance of this as it was determined by the previous state government, and there are no criteria or guidelines. Now KDEB is under a new government and if they change the policy and stipulate guidelines pertaining CSR programmes, then we will adhere to it.” Karim was one of the four witnesses who testified before the seven member Selcat panel made up of five Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen and two Barisan Nasional representatives. The other Selcat members are Bkit Antarabangsa state assemblyman Azmin Ali, Taman Medan assemblyman Haniza Talha, Ulu Kelang assemblyman Shaari Sungib, Bukit Gasing assemblyman Edward Lee, Dusun Tua assemblyman Ismail Sani (BN), and Permatang assemblyman Sulaiman Abdul Razak (BN). He said if the president approves the appeal for funding from organisations like Balkis then the board would have to endorse it. Asked what would happen if he had not approved it, Karim replied: “Susah lah! (that’s hard)”. Several state company representatives and their subsidiaries also admitted that they were obliged to pay for the cost incurred by Balkis saying it was a practice which they did not question. The heads and former managers of the companies said that although they agreed to pay for expenditures, the approvals were based on estimates. The final cost would be paid to suppliers based on based on bills that Balkis forwarded to the companies. Earlier during the morning session, state secretary Datuk Ramli Mahmud said the CSR guidelines for state companies are determined by the companies themselves and that there was no fixed guideline. “It is for the CEOs to decide on based on their budget allocations,” he said. Ramli also denied that where the state was concerned there was no special treatment for Balkis as the organisation had to write in to ask for financial assistance if they wanted it. He said the RM450,000 contribution for Balkis dinner at the Sunway Lagoon Resort and Spa Hotel and the Sunway Lagoon Theme Park Hotel were a one-off contribution to the organisation and the state took into account the fact that the organisation was run by the wives of state representatives. Datuk Ramli Mahmud We received the endorsement of the state executive council (exco) and the financial officer to host the three events which wives of elected representatives from all 13 states in the country attended , with Balkis as the co-host, he added. Meanwhile former Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS) general manager Datuk Harun Salim agreed with the committee when asked if PKNS was a “tukang bayar” (pay master) for Balkis as the association would forward its bills to the company to be paid. He said the organisation would usually forward requests to the company to sponsor some of its programmes and admitted that the company usually felt obliged to support Balkis. Harun however denied that he was concerned about repercussions if he did not endorse the sponsorships because he said his performance and the profits of the company were good. Therefore this was not a reason he took into account when approving the soponsorships. PKNS and its subsidiaries had also contributed large sums to Balkis including RM300,000 for the three dinners held on Aug 2,3 and 4. Pebadanan Kemajuan Pertanian Selangor (PKPS) Mohd Nordin Darhan who also testified before Selcat said the company had on Jan 2006 contributed RM46,000 for the officiating of Balkis complex in Section 7, Shah Alam including the cost of 150 fruit hampers for guests.

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PKR slammed Khir Toyo for self approving to purchase Merc S Class - Malaysiakini

SHAH ALAM: Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo had approved the purchase of a Mercedes S350L worth almost RM1 million for his personal use with funds from Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Berhad when he was Selangor menteri besar.

This resulted in the state having to bear the extravagant purchase, said Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, the political secretary to Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim.

He was responding to Dr Khir's statement who said that the RM2 million purchase of 15 Toyota Camry cars showed that the Pakatan Rakyat leaders were more concerned about their needs than the welfare of Selangor people.

The opposition leader also questioned why the purchase was not made through an open tender and the state government should focus on fulfilling their election manifesto.

In a statement yesterday, Nik Nazmi said the open tender was not used because the cars were bought at market price for RM130,000 each.


The state government received its fleet of Camry cars on Friday.

As for the state's Proton Perdana V6 cars, those below two years old would be retained and used as pool cars.

Underneath is the official statement from the State Governement about this issue :

PEMBELIAN TOYOTA CAMRY TELUS

Shah Alam – Kerajaan Negeri Selangor Pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat memandang serius isu pembelian kereta Camry untuk kegunaan Exco serta Pegawai Kanan Kerajaan Negeri Selangor yang dilihat telah diputar belitkan oleh sesetengah pihak. Keputusan Pembelian Kereta Toyota Camry di buat pada Majlis Mesyuarat Kerajaan Negeri minggu lalu dan bukan tahun lalu kerana belum ada peruntukan ketika itu.

Merujuk kepada kenyataan Dato Khir Toyo yang dibuat dalam beberapa akhbar baru-baru ini sebenarnya telah mencerminkan keperibadian beliau serta kepimpinan UMNO yang masih berfikiran cetek. Keputusan Kerajaan Selangor membeli Toyota Camry sebenarnya dibuat adalah berdasarkan sebut harga yang dihantar syarikat kenderaan dan bukannya menerusi tender terbuka kerana harganya yang telah ditetapkan oleh Kerajaan Persekutuan.

Pembelian kereta Toyota Camry ini sebenarnya tidak menjejaskan langsung projek-projek kebajikan “Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor” yang telah dirancang kerana Kerajaan Negeri sudah mempunyai bajet untuk kesemua program berkenaan.

Segala kecaman yang dikeluarkan oleh Ketua Pembangkang sebenarnya langsung tidak berasas, memandangkan Kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat yang baru sahaja menerajui Kerajaan Negeri telah berjaya melakukan pelbagai program bagi “Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor” dengan cukup memberangsangkan. Lebih

jelik lagi apabila beliau sewaktu memegang jawatan Menteri Besar sebelum ini telah meluluskan pembelian kereta Mercedes S350L menggunakan peruntukan KDEB selaku pengerusinya yang berharga RM 917,214.00 semata-mata untuk kegunaan peribadi.

Adakah beliau lupa akan kos besar yang ditanggung kerajaan negeri dan anak-anak syarikat Kerajaan Negeri akibat masalah pengurusan waktu itu? Adakah beliau lupa berapa banyak keuntungan dikaut pihak pemaju swasta dalam projek-projek usahasama sedangkan Kerajaan Negeri dibelakangkan.

Rakyat Malaysia juga sudah mulai sedar dan faham dengan mainan politik murahan BN. Ketua Pembangkang seharusnya membuat kajian terperinci terlebih dahulu sebelum mengeluarkan sebarang kenyataan agar segala komen itu dilihat lebih membina daripada menfitnah dan tidak terkena ke mukanya sendiri.


Nik Nazmi Bin Nik Ahmad
Setiausaha Politik Kepada YAB Dato’ Menteri Besar Selangor

(NST)

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