PM Orders EPF On Unit Trust Investments. Gives Assurances on 9MP.
Moving swiftly after his caution yesterday on receiving information on the massive losses suffered by the public in mismanaged unit trusts, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ordered the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) to immediately tighten conditions for transfer of savings to unit trusts. He said the EPF could also temporarily stop approving contributors' applications to invest their savings in unit trusts if the scheme continues to incur losses.
The EPF must be convinced first of any plan to withdraw savings for re-investment, he said when speaking at the Prime Minister's Department's monthly assembly at Dataran Perdana here Monday. He issued the order in response to a newspaper report Sunday that about RM600 million in EPF savings invested in unit trusts had incurred losses. The report, quoting trade union sources, said the losses involved about 80 per cent contributors who invested their EPF savings in unit trusts.
"It is an unfortunate incident. Unfortunate for those who use the opportunity to withdraw their savings for re-investment. I don't know where they invest in," Abdullah, who is also Finance Minister, said. He advised contributors to make the right decision before investing their EPF savings so that they would not suffer losses. "If the money is invested in unit trusts which promise all sorts of returns, it will cause investors to lose. Perhaps, the money is invested in non-viable unit trusts," he said.
Abdullah said unit trusts managed by Permodalan Nasional Berhad are examples of good investment schemes
On the Ninth Malaysia Plan, Abdullah hoped all projects, especially those handled by his department, were ready to be tendered out to ensure quick implementation. This would dismiss allegations that the projects announced by the government recently did not exist, he said.
"There are people who try to make all sorts of slander that projects worth millions of ringgit do not exist. Everything has been taken up.
"This is a lie by certain people who purposely want to undermine the government to make others hate us, don't trust us," he said.
Abdullah did not deny some projects were undertaken through direct negotiations or limited tenders but most of the ninth plan projects would be disbursed through open tenders. Selection of successful bidders would be based on their proposals, he said. The Prime Minister's Department would ensure only bidders with the expertise and capabilities to undertake a project would be awarded the tenders, he added.
The EPF must be convinced first of any plan to withdraw savings for re-investment, he said when speaking at the Prime Minister's Department's monthly assembly at Dataran Perdana here Monday. He issued the order in response to a newspaper report Sunday that about RM600 million in EPF savings invested in unit trusts had incurred losses. The report, quoting trade union sources, said the losses involved about 80 per cent contributors who invested their EPF savings in unit trusts.
"It is an unfortunate incident. Unfortunate for those who use the opportunity to withdraw their savings for re-investment. I don't know where they invest in," Abdullah, who is also Finance Minister, said. He advised contributors to make the right decision before investing their EPF savings so that they would not suffer losses. "If the money is invested in unit trusts which promise all sorts of returns, it will cause investors to lose. Perhaps, the money is invested in non-viable unit trusts," he said.
Abdullah said unit trusts managed by Permodalan Nasional Berhad are examples of good investment schemes
On the Ninth Malaysia Plan, Abdullah hoped all projects, especially those handled by his department, were ready to be tendered out to ensure quick implementation. This would dismiss allegations that the projects announced by the government recently did not exist, he said.
"There are people who try to make all sorts of slander that projects worth millions of ringgit do not exist. Everything has been taken up.
"This is a lie by certain people who purposely want to undermine the government to make others hate us, don't trust us," he said.
Abdullah did not deny some projects were undertaken through direct negotiations or limited tenders but most of the ninth plan projects would be disbursed through open tenders. Selection of successful bidders would be based on their proposals, he said. The Prime Minister's Department would ensure only bidders with the expertise and capabilities to undertake a project would be awarded the tenders, he added.
posted by The Malaysian. at 8/07/2006 01:07:00 PM
1 Comments:
This guy is a Trip! I can't stop laughing at him contradicting himself all the time in the same article!
Kudos to the bolded statements.
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