Wednesday October 17, 2012

Govt may take civil action against NFCorp

THE Government is mulling over the possibility of taking civil action against National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) to recover the RM250mil soft loan given to the company, according to the Auditor-General's report.

It said there had been discussions among the Finance Ministry, the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry and the Attorney-General's Chambers to study steps that can be taken against the company.

“The Government had taken steps to look into the direction of the project, including the possibility of taking civil suit against NFCorp and taking back the loan given to the company,” said the report.

It added the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) in Gemas, Negri Sembilan, was also under review by the Government.

“The Finance Ministry and AG's Chambers are reviewing the direction of the NFC. To date, no decision has been made,” it said.

The feedlot centre was reportedly set up to boost the production of beef to reduce dependence on import of the meat.

The issue on the NFC, which was headed by Datuk Seri Dr Mohamed Salleh Ismail, cropped up in the 2010 Auditor-General's report.

It indicated the cattle rearing project had not met annual beef production targets set by the Government.

The issue heated up after the Opposition alleged irregularities over the RM250mil government loan to NFCorp.

The Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur has fixed Nov 5 as the first day of trial of Dr Mohamed Salleh, who is charged with four counts of mishandling nearly RM50mil in company funds.

Meanwhile, PKR strategic director Rafizi Ramli said suing NFCorp would not guarantee the loan will be recovered, alleging that many of the purported abuses were by sister companies of NFCorp.

“Under the law, these companies cannot be sued as they have no responsibilities or obligations towards the agreement (signed between the Government and NFCorp) or the Government,” he said in a posting on his blog yesterday.

Rafizi suggested that the Govern-ment impose a personal guarantee on Dr Mohamed Salleh's wife, Wanita Umno chief Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, and her family to ensure their assets can be confiscated to recoup the soft loan.

News

Wednesday October 17, 2012

Govt may take civil action against NFCorp