Kota Kinabalu: The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) said any alleged wrongdoing in Invest Sabah Berhad should be thoroughly investigated, but that dissolving the State government investment arm will be premature and counterproductive.
Its Bureau of Infrastructure and Utilities (Beaufras) head Peggy Liow said while action should be taken if true, ISB should be allowed to prove itself at least two years.
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Peggy was commenting on Labuan activist Lau Seng Kiat’s call for Invest Sabah to be the first Government Linked Company that should be closed for having got zero investments for Sabah in its five-year existence.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor earlier said that GLCs that make no profits consecutively for five years would be closed.
Lau had said Invest Sabah had wasted about RM25 million in tax payer’s money that was extended to it as the RM20 billion-odd investments Sabah received so far since 2020 were due to the CM and ex-Industrial Development Minister Datuk Ginger Phoong.
He said Invest Sabah has a lot of explaining to do pertaining to allegations ranging from misuse of funds to abuse of power involving top ranking officials who were only interested in jet-setting, including one who even got his “lover’ hired on RM10,000 pay as well as make her a permanent staff heading a department.
Peggy said Sabah remains in urgent need of medium-and large-scale investments, particularly in infrastructure and utilities, to support long-term economic growth and development.
“It is not right to tell Invest Sabah to ‘gulung tikar’ (close shop). Instead, clean it up, get it sorted out and move forward. Staff it with people of calibre, qualifications, integrity and skills.
“Invest Sabah plays an important role in planning, coordinating, promoting and fast-tracking investments into the state, particularly in critical sectors such as infrastructure and utilities.
“Hence, place the right people with vast experiences and skills to lead Invest Sabah that could complement Sabah government efforts to increase its investments to further develop Sabah,” Peggy said.
Peggy said Beaufras is keen to work with Invest Sabah to attract overseas investors, including Fortune 500 companies.
