Pakatan MPs to take Talam issue to Labis

Three Pakatan Rakyat MPs who have been appointed by the Selangor government as spokespersons on the Talam Corporation debt restructuring exercise have challenged MCA’s Labis MP Chua Tee Yong to a debate on the matter in his homeground this weekend.

DAP’s Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua said this is to give the deputy minister, who has been at the forefront of the attacks against the Selangor government, a chance to “prove himself in front of his constituents”.

“If he doesn’t even dare to meet his constituents to tell them about his allegations, then he is not fit to be their MP,” Pua told reporters today.

To make things easier, he said, Chua (left) can even “change the rules” for the debate which will take place at Yong Hock Kong temple hall in the Johor town at 7.30pm this Sunday.

“If he wants (Kuala Selangor MP) Dzulkefly Ahmad to speak Mandarin, also can,” he quipped.
‘Chua can’t run away’

Pua added that Chua cannot now “run away” by questioning the MPs’ role in the matter as they have been appointed official spokespersons.

Chua had earlier turned down invitations to debate Pakatan representatives, demanding instead to face the menteri besar.

Dzulkefly, Pua, PKR’s Selayang MP William Leong and the Selangor Menteri Besar’s political secretary Faekah Husin were yesterday appointed as official Selangor government spokespersons on the matter.

Selangor MB Abdul Khalid Ibrahim yesterday announced that an audit on the Talam debt restructuring exercise by  KPMG Transaction & Restructuring Sdn Bhd (KPMG) found that the state had made a “sound commercial decision”. 

The full report along with a white paper on the matter will be tabled at the November state assembly sitting.

Also present at the press conference was Chan Siew Mei, executive director of KPMG’s advisory unit, who said the scope of the audit was  “strictly to check on transactions and supporting documents”.

“It was not to see if allegations (against the state) were true or not,” she said.

MCA had previously alleged that the state had “bailed out” ailing Talam, in a scandal involving up to RM1 billion.