Malaysia going to the dogs and no one cares, says Kadir

The veteran newsman laments that Najib has inherited the Bugis wanderlust.

PETALING JAYA: Veteran newsman A Kadir Jasin today described Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak as a “footloose and fancy free” Prime Minister, noting that he is now in Japan as Malaysians grapple with serious problems at home.

“It’s confirmed that he has inherited the Bugis wanderlust,” Kadir wrote in his latest blog posting.

“Does he care that 1MDB’s systemic infection of the economy is worsening?” he asked. “Najib pretends not to know while the Bank Negara Governor remains mute.”

He said investors had begun to lose confidence in the economy, as shown by the drop in share prices on Bursa Malaysia.

“Following market talk that Najib would force Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) to buy the power generation assets of 1MDB, the shares of the power utility giant has fallen in the market and the company has lost RM6 billion in market capitalisation within a week,” he noted.

He said this mirrored the fate of Felda Global Ventures (FGV), which was listed amidst much hype in June 2012 in the run-up to the general election in 2013.

“The initial public offer was RM4.55. Those who were able to buy the shares, including settlers, were happy,” he recalled. “Yesterday, the shares were going at RM2.02, not even half of the IPO. The shareholders, those still holding it, have lost RM2.53 per share.

“Is FGV Chairman Mohd Isa Abdul Samad bothered at all?”

Kadir also asked: “What do the ministers who understand the economy and the share market have to say? Mustapa Mohamed, Ahmad Husni Hazadlah and Abdul Wahid Omar have all been struck dumb.

“Forget about Idris Jala. To him, everything can be explained as being in order as long as he and Pemandu get the credit.”