Ex-Malaysian minister Tengku Adnan denies involvement in dubious KL land deals

KUALA LUMPUR (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK, BERNAMA) - Malaysia's former Federal Territories minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor has denied any involvement in dubious land sales by Kuala Lumpur City Hall, saying that he has been questioned 12 times by the anti-graft agency over the matter.

"When I took over the (Federal Territories) ministry in 2013, I handed over land matters to the Prime Minister's Department. I had nothing to do with any approval concerning land in the federal territory," he said in Parliament on Tuesday (Oct 30).

"Many people say that I was not called up by the MACC," he said, referring to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). "Actually, I was called up 12 times and I provided them with whatever information I had."

Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan said this when raising a question to current Federal Territories minister Khalid Samad, asking how much land has been given out in the name of City Hall, known by its Malay acronym DBKL, when Mr Tengku Adnan was minister.

Earlier, Mr Khalid informed lawmakers that 14 out of 97 deals involving DBKL land have been terminated by the special task force set up to review dubious land deals transacted under the former Barisan Nasional administration.

These land sales are being scrutinised by the Malaysian government, as it seeks to recover losses from billions of ringgit worth of land deals struck since 2012, after a probe revealed property developers bought swathes of prime land in the capital from the Federal Territories Ministry at low prices.

"DBKL also held renegotiations with private developers with regard to 15 transactions involving about 60 hectares of land, and succeeded in obtaining additional revenue of RM149 million (S$49.3 million)," Mr Khalid said.

He said that this was clear proof that the land had initially been sold below market value. He added that the special task force is assisting the MACC as it investigates the land deals.