Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (April 4): The Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) says it has "commenced legal action" against Rafizi Ramli, over the lawmaker’s allegation that a relocation project undertaken by LTAT’s subsidiary and 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) had caused delays in gratuity payments to non-pensionable veteran soldiers.

It is learnt that LTAT had issued a letter of demand to Rafizi today.

“It is clear that the claims made by YB Rafizi are slanderous and motivated by malicious intent, with a view to impact the good reputation and credibility of LTAT,” LTAT chairman Tan Sri Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor said in a statement.

Rafizi had claimed that the deal between LTAT's wholly-owned unit Perbadanan Perwira Hartanah Malaysia's (PPHM) and 1MDB in the relocation of eight airbases in Sungai Besi to Bandar Malaysia under the Kuala Lumpur Air Base (PUKL) project, was the reason for delays in gratuity payments to some 110 non-pensionable army veterans.

After being threatened with legal action, the Pandan MP had provided the names of the 110 army veterans to LTAT last Thursday (March 31).

In a statement last Friday (April 1), Rafizi said according to LTAT’s 2014 financial statements, its cash balance stood at RM561 million as at Dec 31, 2014, almost half of its cash balance of RM1.12 billion at the end of Dec 31, 2013.

Rafizi, who is PKR secretary-general, had said the financial position of LTAT was “not comfortable”, as the agency had to fork out RM1 billion for gratuity payments to veteran soldiers in 2014.

He had also claimed that LTAT had paid an advance of RM150 million to PPHM last year, to fund the needs of the PUKL project, in addition to a RM48 million advance made to PPHM for the same project in 2014.

Rafizi had said that LTAT’s advance payments to PPHM affirms the effects of payment delays by 1MDB to LTAT, resulting in LTAT being forced to prioritise funds that have more impact on its lower cash balances in 2014, compared to 2013.

Mohd Anwar said today that based on the list of names provided by Rafizi, LTAT had made payments to 70 army veterans, while the necessary documents for 23 others were received from the Defence Ministry’s Urusan Gaji Angkatan Tentera (UGAT) on April 4.

He said it has yet to receive documents of 16 other veterans from UGAT, while one veteran had failed a fingerprint verification, who has been contacted on the matter.

He also said it was “unreasonable and illogical” for Rafizi to compare the sum of gratuity payments made throughout the year, against LTAT’s cash balance at the end of 2014.

The agency said its year-end cash balance of RM561.5 million in 2014 was recorded after all payments were settled, including payments to contributors who made withdrawals during the year.

Mohd Anwar said that in 2014, total gratuity payments to members who have completed their service with the armed forces amounted to RM982.9 million.

Furthermore, he said it recorded RM1.015 billion in profit — the highest since its inception — in financial year 2014.

He also said in the same year, that the agency had paid out a 15% dividend and spent RM19 million on its corporate social responsibility efforts, which includes scholarships for children of the members of the armed forces, cost of living assistance and the construction of the Marhallah LTAT at the International Islamic University Malaysia (UIAM) in Gombak.

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