Shafie Welcomes Macc Probe Into Sdb S Rm300m Loan To Airasia

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Former Sabah chief minister Mohd Shafie Apdal said he welcomed the MACC's probe into an RM300 million loan from Sabah Development Bank Sdn Bhd (SDB) to AirAsia.
In a statement, Shafie said there's nothing to hide about the loan.
"As the former chief minister and finance minister, I'm aware that there's nothing to hide about the loan as the application was not made overnight.
"Instead, SDB had conducted its investigation and consideration thoroughly before approving the loan," said the Warisan president.
He said AirAsia is a company registered with Bursa Malaysia, and therefore, the RM300 million transaction was approved after ait met all the requirements of the application.
Shafie's statement followed a media report today that the Sabah MACC had started its probe on the matter.


The report quoted the source as saying that Sabah Chief Minister Hajiji Noor had ordered a forensic investigation by an independent audit firm into the transaction.
The report said the loan was approved by Shafie's administration on July 2.
AirAsia, Shafie said, had a development plan which targeted to offer about 100,000 job opportunities in the state.
Elaborating further, he shared that AirAsia had planned to run several development projects in Kota Kinabalu such as a hub to store agriculture produce known as OurFarm.
The produce would then be sold via e-commerce, he said.
Shafie said the company had planned to spend RM110 million to develop Kota Kinabalu international airport as its international hub.
"AirAsia's plans would benefit Sabah as a state rich in agriculture and fishery.
"In fact, when I was the chief minister, I had launched the Agriculture Development Action Plan 2021-2030 to turn Sabah into a state producing agriculture products while ensuring food security for the country," he said.

Shafie added that the administration must not look down on the role that AirAsia offered. - Mkini

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