Anwar: Forex loss not my fault

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 24, 2012): Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PKR-Permatang Pauh) said he was not to be blamed for the losses suffered by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) in the foreign exchange (forex) market during the 90s.

Anwar, who was the then finance minister, insisted that it was he who had instructed BNM to stop speculating on the currency market in 1993.

“As finance minister, I had confirmed it and instructed the immediate halt of all forex trading,” he said today when he was given the floor to explain by Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia.

Anwar claimed the forex trading only took place “before 1990” with the approval of the then Finance Minister and Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

He added that the then BNM governor Tan Sri Jaffar Hussein and current Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, who was in charge of forex in BNM during the period, had also offered to resign.

“But after I was jailed, Nor Mohamed was promoted to minister,” said Anwar.

Earlier, Khairy Jamaluddin (BN-Rembau) interjected to a question raised by Lim Guan Eng (DAP-Bagan), saying it was a “soalan bunuh kawan” (question which could bring harm to a friend).

Referring to the Hansard from 1993, Khairy said Guan Eng’s father, Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur) had then called for Anwar to take “minis-terial responsibility” over the losses. To this, Anwar said it was not wrong for Kit Siang to pose the question as he was seeking explanation.

Earlier, Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Seri Donald Lim told the Dewan that Malaysia lost RM5.7 billion in 1992 as stated in BNM’s 1993 annual report.

He was replying to Guan Eng who asked who were involved and if action was taken against the officers responsible. However, the deputy minister skirted the issue and told Guan Eng to refer the matter to Anwar as he was the finance minister then.

“The RM5.7 billion figure was reported in BNM’s 1993 report. We know this issue. We know that Permatang Pauh was the minister at that time, until 1998.

“If any action was to be taken, it should have been done during that time and not wait until a few years later and then question,” he said

LA: How comes Anwar want to be a good "PM"!!