1MDB motion raise suspicion of MP bribery in early 90s Pergau dam scandal

At the end of the previous posting here, there was a link to a Malaysiakini report (read here) of veteran MP, Ann Clwyd putting a motion to debate 1MDB in the House of Commons. For non-M'kini subscriber, more accessible news in The Malaysian Insight (TMI) here.

It is no co-incident that the early day motion was tabled after Tun Dr Mahathir returned from his London family raya gathering. It is widely suspected there was a meeting to collaborate a new spin on 1MDB with Sarawak Report's Clare Rewcastle Brown.

SR is currently aggressively spinning and promoting this new development and as usual to blow it out of proportion.

Nurul Izzah is trying to float the issue by calling on PM to not remain silent. Quite an old propaganda trick.

Ann Clwyd is from the Labour Party and had a past with Malaysia with regard to the Pergau dam scandal. The mere mention of the Labour Party conjures up the image of the flow chart put up by Raja Petra in his Malaysia Today.

It is the link between former Leader of Labour and British Prime Minister, Tony Blair with Clare Rewcastle's campaign against Pehin Seri Taib Mahmud and 1MDB. Read here.

Apparently, it is a properly researched effort by Third Force.

According to Wikileak here, Ann Clwyd is an MP from Wales since 1984. She lost her Cynon Valley seat in the reelection in 2006 due to her closeness to Tony Blair. In 2015, she stand again to recapture her seat in the House of Common.

MyKMU here made a research and found that Ann Clwyd was the MP that raised issue on the abuse of the Overseas Development Administration (ODA) aids to Malaysia for the Pergau dam scandal in the early 1990s.     

It was linked to a pounds 1.3 billion arms sale to Malaysia and bribery.

The name of Mahathir's infamous long time suspected proxy and definitely crony, Tan Sri Arumugam surfaced.

This is the same Arumugam, who owns a resort in Argentina and may have paid for Mahathir's ranch in Buenos Aires but naturally the owner are his proxies. The proxies could be holding shares for Mahathir in a certain IPP.

It is at this ranch that a meeting of all IPP owners - Chinese, Indian, Malaysia and offcourse, 1Malaysia racial make-up - with Mahathir were held before the GE13.

They complained 1MDB's plan to nationalise IPP and heard the later plan was tolled roads.

In the 1994 report by The Independent here, their Westminster Correspondent, Chris Blackhurst wrote:

BARONESS CHALKER of Wallasey, the Minister for Overseas Development, complained to Douglas Hurd, the Foreign Secretary and her boss, about the granting of pounds 234m in state aid to the Pergau dam project in Malaysia.

Whitehall sources said yesterday that Lady Chalker was fiercely opposed to Pergau and gave full backing to her officials, notably Tim Lankester, at the time Permanent Secretary at the Overseas Development Administration, who objected in writing to Mr Hurd.

Baroness Chalker's role in the aid-for-arms controversy emerged as an MP said UK companies paid pounds 35m in 'bribes and backhanders' to middlemen and members of the Malaysian royal family. Using parliamentary privilege, Brian Sedgemore, Labour MP for Hackney South and Shoreditch, told a Commons select committee the allegations surfaced in October 1990.

Ann Clwyd, then shadow Minister for Overseas Development, wrote to the National Audit Office about the aid programme's 'misuse of large sums of taxpayers' money'.

Mr Sedgemore said the accusation centred on corruption by three companies: GEC, Trafalgar House and Balfour Beatty. Ms Clwyd had been told the cost of the pounds 400m project 'includes pounds 35m in bribes or 'fees' '. He made his claim to the sub-committee of the Treasury and Civil Service committee which was hearing evidence from Sir John Bourn, NAO head. Sir John said it was his office's job to audit the accounts of public bodies such as the ODA. There was no evidence of corruption in the ODA's books.

However, he emphasised that he did not look at where the administration's money had gone - the NAO did not have the power to follow public money once it had been paid to private contractors.

It seemed to be a cover-up for bribery.

Tim Lankester went on to write a book "The Politics and Economics of Britain's Foreign Aid: The Pergau Dam Affair" on the scandal.

The Pergau affair had something to do with Mahathir's controversial policy to Buy British Last and correspondingly, Look East Policy.

And Malaysians were duped into thinking we were standing up to our former colonial. In fact, it could likely be blackmail for a deal.

Nothing behind any of Mahathir's initiatives, project or politics that does not involve personal business interest for himself, family, proxies and cronies.

Didn't close our eyes and ears during the time cooperating with his team. Only truth and rightousness matter.

Even some seen as cronies are being used for his personal greed. Do enough research and one will uncover many Malay corporate leaders used and manipulated by Mahathir.

In collaboration with mamak forex trader, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, the empire built broken to pieces and assets stolen

In an enquiry held, Ann Clwyd failed to offer any proof or evidence.

One would presume she acted as any typical opposition in Malaysia would do to whack without thorough investigation. Tim Lankester found out and wrote:

He wrote further:

Now that Ann Clwyd is at it again whacking before any proof or evidence is forthcoming, will she clamp up in any enquiry to claim no proof or evidence and withheld her source in the event an enquiry is held?

If she does it again, she may have taken bribe back in 1994 to clamp up and now raise the motion on 1MDB in the House of Common last week. Why would she be willing to be associated with corruption tarnished Mahathir from more than 20 years ago?

Over the years, Arumugam have been working his way into the British corridor or power and English high society. He may have got to her.

It also could be Clare whose brother-in-law is former British PM Gordon Brown.

All these cannot be just coincident. More so, the timing is after Mahathir met Clare in London over Hari Raya.

The 1MDB related application by DOJ is unlikely to stick. This is merely new content to up the high stake trial by media perception game.

It does shows desperation by Mahathir upon the announcement for an RCI on Bank Negara forex trading loss in the late 1980s. Read The Mole commentary here.