There is something about the Treasury Secretary (the acronym normally referred to as KSP), Tan Sri Dr Irwan Serigar bin Abdullah. KSP could mean anything from Ketua Setiausaha Perbendahraaan to probably a keling shoefetish psychotic.
On a serious note, there have been controlled rumour coming out from Putrajaya from operational people of collusion used to be associated with one politician with an SUB, but apparently has expanded to include the KSP, a TKSU (which could likely be a promoted SUB), and a powerful PA that could determine outcome through assigning of files to the right person.
Have not done research on this so one can't spill the bean yet without the specifics.
However, the sore point with KSP is the manner budget cut was made - mindless 20% across-the-board budget that compromise most basic function of government as police, army, law enforcement (with special attention to graft busters), foreign service, and could extend to include education.
Police sargeants takes 6 months to get their their out-station work claims.
Yet it is heard he still insist to fly first class and stay in his entitled suite without much conscience to pay at least €700 per night with enforcement officers on assignment to Kota Kinabalu staying below their entitlement in budget hotels and flying AirAsia.
But this posting is more about something not quite right with his appointment as Chairman of TRX and Bandar Malaysia.
Confident
Have been under the weather for the past two to three weeks. Nak continue the earlier posting pun tak larat. So throughout these week have been undergoing medical treatment somewhere.
In one of those quick check of the news on the smartphone between the sleep, must have came a cross an opposition media purportedly claiming Arul Kanda contract will not be renewed. Can't find the link so it could be hallucination.
It turned out later that after reading PM's statement that Arul is staying and KSP will be the new Chairman for Bandar Malaysia and TRX.
It smells of a PTD devious game. It has a signature similar to Tun Musa positioning himself as Chairman of merged Synergy Drive Berhad.
Leak the information and advise PM. Dato Najib operates on advise from his peers and underlings. He behaves in the role of any Chairman of the Board. Decisions are made within his scope of power and based on advise.
He does not pretend to be a know all CEO that ended up with a string of failures that former SJ reporter estimated (and his estate has yet to be sued) to cost taxpayers US$100 billion at a time our foreign exchange reserve could probably be wiped out due to high level approved forex speculation loses.
KSP maybe the Chairman of 1MDB but he is there as government official merely to represent government interest. He has no business of being a Chairman of an operating unit.
Though it is not his role to be involved in operations, it requires someone with past experience in business operation particularly banking or development to chair a development company embarking is tens of billions ringgit project.
Why did he suspiciously play this game to oust Arul Kanda to position himself?
For one, a PTD Mafia is quick to smell a pot of gold as much as Malaysiakini here that was part of the conspiracy to railroad 1MDB by spreading fake news and claims of an insolvent 1MDB and various there irresponsible allegations but claim could now advise on how to make RM90 billion out of Bandar Malaysia.
As much as these PTD have no conscience to spend public money to stay in a €700 per night accomodation for few nights, they do not have the conscience to reap the reward from the effort of others that have toiled and been placed under immense public and opposition pressure through the years.
In the meanwhile, the KSP had been there from the early inception but failed to spot or raised peculiarities in 1MDB dealings. Nothing more dangerous and reckless than a senior government official in his prime and near retirement but feeling unsecured it. KSP could be one.
Suspicion
Raja Petra here suspected KSP double dealed to talk to Wanda and cancelled on CREC and IWH. He displayed a picture of KSP in Chin at a golf shop.
He suspected KSP collaborated with Malaysia Insight to do the fake news on Arul. It is not a bad idea to have Arul as 1MDB CEO to be Chairman of operating unit. It will ensure professionalism and allay barbarians at the gate.
RPK's info is taken into consideration for verification but the CREC-IWH did not deliver on their commitment. The "ghost of Johor" maybe up to his neck in debt and is biting more than he could chew that even pledging his back side could not get a guarantee issued by any Bank.
For 1 year, several highly reliable sources claimed they have postphoned an agreed financial guarantee to be given to 1MDB for something like 11 times. When they were notified of the cancellation in January 2017, there were still given another 3-month leeway.
So, there is no issue of China putting pressure to reconsider CREC as The Star tried to salvage for Tan Sri Lim Kang Ho, the JV failed to deliver. Najib has confirmed no such thing. It means China gave a tacit approval to change to another Chinese shareholder. Dia mahu jaga muka ...
Co-incidently, the renegotiated deal with possible candidate Wanda can reap in the appreciation in value of the land and now have 50% instead of a minority stake. Malaysiakini bad intention is as clear as the sea surrounding Tioman.
Incompetence?
An opposition leader including Tony Pua asked as to why the deposit was returned [read here]. This should the first test on KSP's ability as Chairman of 1MDB.
The practise is never to return the deposit. One can assume it is to appease his Majesty the Sultan of Johor as Lim Kang Ho is his business associate but it is not fair and disrespectful to make such assumption.
The likelihood is KSP decided. Arul will be professional and adhere to normal business practises and as stipulated in agreement. Here lies a conflict of interest because Khazanah Nasional has interest in IWH and KSP is a member of the Board of Khazanah. Johor government position is clear that the state government is not affected.
It is noticeable Tony Pua is doing a copycat and has no new idea. He is now grasping at straws to just criticise everythinng that comes out without any resemblance of consistencies. Undeniably, he is losing the plot on 1MDB as he loses more lawsuits in court [read here].
He should heed the advise of one PPBM Supreme Council to forget the issue. It is waning off and more embarassment could come as PM will be on a Middle East trip soon.
Psychological disorder
Back to the KSP.
According to RPK here, KSP is into fast bikes and fast women. One has to be loaded for such indulgence.
When something suspicious turned up, one must try to understand the person. So one look into the FB for a glimpse of the person. This Indian-convert from Kelantan that married a Malay wife has an FB below:
No he is not thinking about #negaraku Malaysia tercinta but the colour of shoes he has not owned #@*&%*!
Emulating the narcissistic behaviour of a Gen Y, he shows off his shoe fetishism in his Instagram like a hormone loaded adolescent.
Wonder what Singaporeans, China's Chinese, and other interested foreigners and business people etc will exploit of his strange shoe fetish behaviour.
Wikipedia here described shoe fetishism as "the attribution of attractive sexual qualities to shoes or other footwear as a matter of sexual preference, or an alternative or complement to a relationship with a partner".
Psychology Today here attributed it to "paraphilic disorders, which refers to intense sexual attraction to any objects or people outside of genital stimulation with consenting adult partners." Other articles generally do not see any abnormality (typical of orang putih) to such sexual behaviours, but some experts suspect seriously wrong "upstairs" for the more extreme tendencies.
The usual phenomenon is men having shoe fetish for women shoes but what do they make out of a keling with a shoe fetish for men shoe.
Yet he does not keep his dark secret to himself but publish it in his Instagram. He seemed excited as he shows off his orange and black shoes. Extreme narcissist?
Wonder what is bugging him?
Not yet to believe yet of RPK's story on the young gorgeous starlet TMJ gave a pass as wife, but is it a case of unreturned love? Or Fazura did not acquire any taste of shoe fetishism for men shoesor keling with multicolured shoe fetishism?
Young women
Apparently, his affinity for young women has been under the radar. A pro-opposition blogger, SteadyKu here have picked on this far back as 2014.
Look at his FB followers:
Envy?
Are you kidding?
How could one ever be envious of a near 60 year old narcissist keling from Kelantan with a shoe fetishism for men's shoe and does not have a habit of looking at himself into the mirror daily to comb his hair before going to work?
One has to act according to one's own age and social standing.
So be it. The real matter is his appointment raises much concern. He has too many positions in his portfolio that he will not be able to have the time to read the papers and grasp the issues in the strategic development.
And there is that rumour from Putrajaya ....