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UMNO ministers in the unity government will never agree to allow Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) to be privatised by a company linked to Israel, former party leader Khairy Jamaluddin said.
Speaking at the "Tolak Blackrock Selamatkan Harta Negara" forum last night, Khairy said his former colleagues in Umno would reject the deal if it was brought before the cabinet.
"I am confident that if this privatisation matter was discussed in a cabinet meeting, my good friends in Umno will reject it.
"If the ministers were asked, can we allow Blackrock to acquire the shares in MAHB, those Umno ministers I know will not say yes," said Khairy.
The forum last night was organised by Secretariat Solidarity Palestine (SSP). Among other guests were Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions chairman Dr Nazari Ismail, former foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah, and SSP spokesman Tian Chua.
Earlier this week, 21 civil societies urged the government to reconsider its decision to allow a company with alleged links to Israel to own shares in MAHB.
The group was against the participation of BlackRock, through its fully owned subsidiary Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), in a consortium with Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) that will acquire all the shares in MAHB.
The civil society group also accused BlackRock, a New York City-based investment firm, of “profiteering from genocide” through its equity in US defence companies that allegedly manufacture weapons used by Israel.
In January, BlackRock, one of the world’s largest asset management companies holding shares in several defence industry enterprises, agreed to acquire GIP.
Khairy said the cabinet must be informed of a deal that involved government policy.
"The government will not be notified if it is a normal business deal that does not touch on government policies. There is no need to bring a national asset deal to the cabinet because it will be handled by the board of directors," he said.
"However, in a case of government policy, the cabinet must be informed, and BlackRock acquisition touches on government policy but the matter was not brought to the ministers' attention."
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had said that the opposition was trying to incite hatred of the government by criticising GIP’s investment in MAHB.
Khazanah and EPF had said that they planned to take over and privatise MAHB through a consortium.
Khazanah will increase its ownership in MAHB from 33.2% to 40% and EPF from 7.9% to 30%, giving Malaysian investors a 70% stake in MAHB. – June 21, 2024.
