DAP objects to 'MCA-linked' newsman's membership in NRC
DAP has objected to the participation of Star Media Group advisorWong Chun Wai in the National Recovery Council (NRC).
The party's secretary-general, Lim Guan Eng, said the NRC has a veryimportant role to play and hence must not comprise by including"politically connected" individuals, as there is sufficient politicalrepresentation from the government and opposition parties.
According to Lim, Wong is an employee of the Star Media Group which iscontrolled by the MCA.
"Wong is naturally a mouthpiece of MCA. But he also aggressivelypromoted the infamous Low Taek Jho, or Jho Low, of 1MDB fame by interviewing and publishing (thepiece) on Low in The Star on July 29, 2010.
"When the financial wrongdoings in 1MDB were exposed, neither TheStar nor Wong offered any mea culpa nor pursued the shady dealings unlikeThe Edge newspaper," Lim said in a statement today.
The Bagan MP argued that members of the NRC must not only have a professionalbackground but possess the "unbridled courage" to speak truth topower.
"Several of the so-called subject matter experts appointed obviously donot qualify when they had either condoned or maintained a loud silence on thegreatest financial scandal in history," he added.
Wong, 54, was among several individuals Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul AbdulAziz named yesterday as members of the NRC. A list of "industryexperts" invited to the council appears at the end of this article.
Lim also questioned the appointment of former Khazanah chief executiveofficer (CEO) Azman Mokhtar to the NRC, in view that he was once the target ofInternational Trade and Industry Minister Azmin Ali's criticism.
"Azmin revealed in Parliament in 2018 that Khazanah lost US$20 million (RM84 million) in a lingerie retailer in India and a RM3 billion investment via private equityto take over a bank also went bust.
"If Azman is now appointed, is this not a humiliating slap in the facefor Azmin, who should not sit in the NRC if he is a man of honour?" Limsaid.
He added that some better candidates for the NRC include economist JomoKwame Sundaram, surgeon Dr Yahya Awang and former international trade andindustry minister Rafidah Aziz.
Meanwhile, Lim revealed that the DAP did not receive an invitation to jointhe council. If it does receive an invitation, the party will study the termsof reference first before making a commitment.
According to Zafrul, Pakatan Harapan will be invited to participate in thecouncil.
The list of "industry experts" invited to the council is asfollows:
Nor Mohamed Yakcop - former finance minister
Azman Mokhtar - former Khazanah Bhd CEO
Anthony Fernandes - AirAsia Group CEO
Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman - professor at UM faculty of medicine
Wong Chun Wai - Star Media Group advisor
Michael Kang - SME Association chairperson
Habibah Abdul Rahim - former senior civil servant
Hartini Zainuddin - activist
Dr Sivakumar Thurairajasingam - psychiatry expert
