RM486m state investment above board, claims Perak MB

Five Global Business Services (GBS) companies that were involved RM486 million investment in Perak had went through stringent approval processes by the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA), said Perak Menteri Besar Ahmad Faizal Azumu.

In a statement, Faizal (photo) said applications for investment in the state were also subject to reviews by related agencies from both the state and federal governments.

"In an input to the Menteri Besar Office today, NCIA also informed that the applications for investment would be looked into together by the state Economic Development Unit and federal agencies including the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, International Trade and Industry Ministry, Finance Ministry, Economic Affairs Ministry and the Inland Revenue Board," he said.  

"Due diligence had been presented to the National Committee on Investment, so the allegation by the opposition who questioned the credibility of the companies in realising the investment, which would create 1,5000 job opportunities, during the recent Perak state assembly session was baseless.

"The state government regrets the state assemblypersons' action as it can create uneasiness among investors and at the same time they can cause the investors to lose interest, and thus jeopardises the effort to create jobs for graduates and people of Perak." 

Faizal's statement came in response to a viral video clip, which showed Umno assemblyperson Salbiah Mohamed (Temengor) raising the issue of the RM486m investment at the state assembly.

According to Sinar Harian, the companies were Puncak Tegap Sdn Bhd, Volgo Sdn Bhd, Revoluteq Sdn Bhd, TecCSA Sdn Bhd, and DigitalQ Solutions Sdn Bhd.

Salbiah questioned how the companies, which she claimed some were established earlier this year with only RM1 and RM99 paid capitals, could participate in carrying out hundreds of million ringgit worth of investment.

According to Faizal, the GBS initiative was carried out to accelerate the development of the economy in the state, and the participation of the companies were private-sector driven.