PUTRAJAYA: The unpatriotic acts of some Malaysians in shaming the country for political gains came at a nearly heavy cost, said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
The Prime Minister said the RM31bil investment from Saudi Aramco was almost a non-reality due to “misinformation” fed by certain people to the oil company.
“The recent visit by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud saw the signing of a lucrative deal between Petronas and Saudi Aramco, which was worth RM31bil.
“However, this nearly did not come to fruition because Aramco were initially reluctant as they were told that Malaysia was not politically stable and that it was risky to invest here.
“They were told that the EPF (Employees Provident Fund) was almost bankrupt and that the Government could not afford to pay the salaries of civil servants.
“Fortunately, we were able to convince them and told them the truth, that Malaysia is a successful nation,” he said in his speech at the Ekspresi Negaraku campaign launch.
He said those responsible for the misinformation did not care for the country’s well-being.
“We nearly lost a substantial investment deal due to the heartless acts of these people, whose intention is only to bring the country down.”
Najib also spoke of a “former leader” who tried to paint a wrong picture of Malaysia by falsely claiming that Malaysia was one of the top 10 most corrupt countries.
“The fact is, out of over 160 countries, Malaysia is at number 55 in the Corruption Perception Index. We are not as bad as claimed.
“As Prime Minister, I can accept … that being at number 55 means there is room for improvement. But I reject it if someone makes negative allegations in hopes of bringing down the Government,” he said.
Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Aramco’s investment of RM31bil makes it the single largest investor in the country. The deal between Aramco and Petronas was signed in Kuala Lumpur during King Salman’s visit last month.
Under the agreement, both companies will jointly develop and manage an oil refinery at the Rapid (Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development) project in Pengerang, Johor.-thestar
