Anwar has to remember what he says because he has been contradicting himself so many times. Back in 2012 Anwar said the losses were about US$10 billion and that Mahathir was involved, and yesterday he said it was only RM5.7 billion and Mahathir was not involved. The problem with Anwar is he is incapable of telling the truth and nothing that comes out of his mouth can be believed any more.
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Last Thursday, Anwar Ibrahim testified at the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on the Bank Negara US$10 billion forex scandal and insisted that the losses were only RM5.7 billion and not RM31-32 billion.
RM5.7 billion was the official figure while what was not reported and was hidden from public knowledge is that the real losses exceeded RM31 billion. And it was Anwar who was the Finance Minister then and who hid the real figure from the public and lied to both Parliament and the Cabinet.
Other than what the real losses were, the other lie that Anwar perpetuated was the nature of the losses. To Parliament Anwar said they were only ‘paper losses’ while to the Cabinet Anwar said they were ‘deferred expenditure’ and ‘unrealised losses’. Both were lies.
Yesterday Anwar told his third lie. He told the RCI that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad never gave any instructions to gamble on the forex market while five years ago in June 2012, in a seminar in Penang, he fingered Mahathir and Tun Daim Zainuddin (see news reports below).
Anwar has to remember what he says because he has been contradicting himself so many times. Back in 2012 Anwar said the losses were about US$10 billion and that Mahathir was involved, and yesterday he said it was only RM5.7 billion and Mahathir was not involved. The problem with Anwar is he is incapable of telling the truth and nothing that comes out of his mouth can be believed any more.
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Mahathir did not give any instructions to play the forex market
(Malaysian Digest, 8 September 2017) – Jailed Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim finally testified before the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) foreign exchange (forex) losses in the 1990s.
In his testimony yesterday, he placed the blame largely on former BNM advisor Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop.
As the finance minister during the 1990s, Anwar said it was Nor Mohamed who did not provide an accurate picture of the losses when questioned by Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) chairman Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan.
Anwar also revealed that former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad never issued any instructions regarding the forex losses.
“Dr Mahathir (Mohamad) did not give instructions (regarding forex trading),” Anwar told the commission that he instructed then Treasury second deputy secretary-general Clifford Francis Herbert to prepare the report, The Malaysian Insight reports.
“And we met Dr Mahathir. He never gave any instructions to proceed with forex or not. He just listened.”
The RCI chairman had also raised the query as to whether Anwar deliberate keep the real losses when he presented the report in the Cabinet.
However, his line of questioning was sidelined by Anwar who said he merely reported on what was in the audited report.
“Cabinet was informed of BNM’s audited report,” Anwar replied.
“Although they knew, as far as the Cabinet was concerned they were never informed of the actual losses.
“I am sure you are smarter than that, Datuk Seri,” Sidek countered in answer.
“You managed the economy and what you’re talking about now is about the accounting treatment. You knew it (about the losses)! But you chose not to inform the Cabinet,” Sidek said.
Anwar replied that the Cabinet had been briefed in 1994 that the total exposure amounted to RM9.3 billion.
A statement was issued by his lawyer Gurdial Singh after the RCI session to reporters stating that Anwar was simply reporting what was in the audited report.
“He cannot deviate from that. Now the chairman (Sidek) kept insisting that (RM5.7 billion) was not the actual loss. But that is not for him to say. If that is not the actual loss, then you must take into issue the auditor-general or the governor of Bank Negara, why did you present it in this way.”
Anwar is the 18th witness to testify before the RCI and according to media reports, Anwar did not provide any written statement when giving his testimony before the panel, as he claimed he was not given sufficient time to prepare, NST reports.
Mahathir also made his second appearance at the RCI yesterday to watch Anwar testify, arriving 10 minutes after Anwar started his testimony. Anwar’s wife and PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail was also present during the proceedings.
Anwar was the finance minister from 1991 to 1998 while Mahathir was still prime minister.
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