Daim akui kekayaan beliau boleh cecah RM50 Billion

Oleh – Ku Zairi Ku Kamal

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Bekas Menteri Kewangan, Tun Daim Zainuddin mengakui kekayaan beliau boleh mencecah sehingga RM50 Billion sekiranya tidak menyertai ‘kerajaan’.

Beliau menyifatkan dirinya hilang ‘sumber kekayaan’ selepas menyertai kabinet Mahathir pada 1984 sehingga 2001.

“At that point, my liquid assets stood at over RM750 million. If I had put that amount into an S&P 500 index fund in 1984, the value today would be over RM42 billion,” said the former finance minister in his affidavit to support a judicial review application which he, his family and their company Ilham Tower Sdn Bhd had filed challenging the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) action to freeze their accounts and subject them to investigation.

“If I had stayed in business and done nothing to actively grow these assets, the value of my liquid stock holdings alone would be worth over RM50 billion today. That is my personal cost today in my decision to join the government. – The Coverage-12/1/2024

Pendedahan Daim ini dipercayai ada kaitan dengan siasatan oleh Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia-SPRM dan penyitaan Menara Ilham.

Sebelum ini, Daim tidak pernah menyentuh atau mendedahkan kekayaan beliau ataupun pegangan sahamnya kepada umum.

Malah, spekulasi mengenai kewujudan bank miliknya di Benua Afrika juga masih menjadi tandatanya. Berapa banyak bank yang dimiliki Daim di negara-negara Afrika dan apa tujuan membuka perniagaan bank di negara dunia ke-3?

Selain menjadi orang kepercayaan, Daim juga dikenali sebagai orang paling rapat dengan Mahathir. Malah, beliau dilantik Mahathir mengetuai “Council of Eminent Person” untuk membantu Kerajaan Pakatan Harapan.

“Among the top priorities on the CEP’s to-do-list is the cull and restructuring of government institutions and state-owned enterprises. Since Dr Mahathir’s historic victory in the May polls, the country has seen a spate of resignations by top government and corporate leaders.

While the CEP is not responsible for every departure, they have been linked to the resignation of several top leaders including the governor of the Central Bank, the Chief Justice, and the President of the Court of Appeals. In the case of the latter two, the CEP had summoned them to a meeting where council member, Daim effectively sought their resignation.” – The Asean Post-27/7/2018

Namun demikian peranan ‘CEP’ banyak menimbulkan kontroversi terutama melibatkan keputusan yang melibatkan banyak pihak.

Daim wajar menoleh sebentar peranan beliau ketika mengetuai ‘CEP’ dan tidak perlu gusar sekiranya tiada sebarang salahguna atau proses ‘penggubahan wang’ dalam semua syarikat miliknya yang disiasat SPRM.

Benarlah kata-kata hikmat yang sering digunapakai – “Roda itu bulat, setiap yang berada di atas pasti akan ke bawah”.

“What goes around, comes around”