Dr Wee commends Johari for remarks on 1MDB settlement with Goldman Sachs

PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong has praised former second finance minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani for urging Putrajaya to scrutinise the former administration’s settlement negotiations over the 1MDB scandal.

“Thank you for presenting such an articulate debate at the Dewan Rakyat (on Monday, Feb 27). Congratulations YB!” Dr Wee said in a Facebook post.

During the debate in Parliament, Johari questioned the former administration’s “poor” negotiations on Goldman Sachs’ US$2.5bil (RM10.7bil) settlement over its role in the 1MDB scandal, claiming it was unfair.

“Why are we sacrificing the money that we could have received from the No 1 investment bank in the world? They make billions of profit,” Johari said.

“We were satisfied with the US$2.5bil settlement because we achieved our political objectives.”

So far, the terms of the settlement agreement have been withheld due to a confidentiality provision prohibiting its publication.

In January, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim demanded that Goldman Sachs honour its agreement with the government over its role in the 1MDB scandal.

Under a settlement in October 2020, Goldman Sachs was to pay US$2.5bil while guaranteeing the return of US$1.4bil of 1MDB assets seized by authorities around the globe.

Source : THE STAR