KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 — Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh today proposed a royal commission of inquiry into the losses incurred at sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional through investments in Fashion Valet Sdn Bhd.
He said the losses involving the e-commerce platform as well as in the case of National Farmers Organisation (NAFAS) came from Malaysian taxpayers, which required full and public accounting.
“Therefore, we suggest establishing a royal commission of inquiry to investigate the two issues currently at the centre of national debate,” he said in a statement today.
“Whether it's FashionValet or NAFAS, if any misconduct is found, not a single person involved in these cartels consuming public funds should be allowed to escape accountability!”
Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim ordered Khazanah Nasional to conduct an internal audit over its investment in FashionValet, which incurred a loss of over RM43 million so far.
Prior to that, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission also confirmed an investigation into FashionValet.
FashionValet founders Datuk Fadza Anuar and Datin Vivy Yusof have also resigned from the firm and pledged to take “full responsibility” for the failed investment, albeit without explaining what this entailed.
In 2018, Khazanah Nasional and Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) invested a combined RM47 million in FashionValet, with Khazanah contributing RM27 million and PNB RM20 million, to acquire minority stakes.
The two government-linked investment companies later divested their stake for RM3.1 million.
