RM1.18 bil land sale: Rahman slams Azmin over ‘middleman’ companies
(FMT) – Barisan Nasional strategic communications director Abdul Rahman Dahlan has challenged Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali to answer lingering questions on the Ijok land deal.
The land in Ijok was initially given to a group of settlers in the state in 1998.
The settlers then agreed to allow a few companies, including Mujur Zaman Sdn Bhd and LBCN Development Sdn Bhd, to develop the land in exchange for compensation and housing.
The companies were then allowed by Azmin to sell the land to a public company for RM1.18 billion.
Rahman said the settlers only got their compensation a few days ago when Azmin announced that the state government had paid all 980 settlers RM180,000 and given them a house worth RM250,000 each.
Rahman, who is also a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, questioned why Azmin did not wait for the case to be heard in the Federal Court and instead withdrew the case although it would have favoured the state government.
“It was a stupid thing to do. Did the two companies force Azmin to allow them to sell the land?
“Azmin should know that the previous decisions from the High Court and Court of Appeal had favoured the state and the then menteri besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim. He, too, would have stood a good chance of winning the case in the Federal Court.
“What is his justification to hand over the land worth RM1.18 billion to the companies when the case was not even heard at the Federal Court yet? What was the rush to withdraw the case?
“If Azmin’s intention was to settle the compensation claims by the settlers, why didn’t he sell the land to a public company and use the RM1.18 billion to settle their compensation claims?
“Just a few days ago, Azmin announced payment of RM421 million to the 980 settlers. What happened to the balance of RM758.6 million?” he asked during a press conference here today.
Rahman also said MACC was already conducting an investigation into the matter as many reports had been lodged.
However, he declined to give further details.
“You can ask the details from MACC.”
It was reported in 2015 that ECO World Development Group Bhd bought a 889.5ha parcel of land in the northwestern Klang Valley corridor for RM1.18 billion to develop three property projects, worth an estimated RM15 billion in gross development value.
