KUALA LUMPUR: Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) assets that were transferred to a special purpose vehicle (SPV) under the Finance Ministry (MoF) will be returned to TH.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the decision was made after the MoF was satisfied with the way the pilgrimage fund is being managed, as well as its ongoing financial performance.
"I have been closely monitoring the developments and I have said this from the beginning after I took over this post, that once TH is being managed well and convincingly, the MoF will start the discussion of handing back assets that are currently entrusted to the SPV to TH.
"I believe there is no reason why the MoF cannot hand back the assets to TH," he said in a speech at Tabung Haji's 60th anniversary celebration today.
Present at the event were Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na'im Mokhtar, TH group managing director and chief executive officer Syed Hamadah Syed Othman and TH chairman Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar.
Anwar, who is also the finance minister, added that the move was also to quash claims by certain quarters that TH assets parked under the SPV were handed over to non-Muslim ownership, which he said was untrue.
"This is also to put an end to the allegations made against the then finance minister (Lim Guan Eng), which said that he transferred assets to non-Muslim ownership.
"I have seen the record in MoF and assets are still under MoF," he said.
After the event, Anwar said the discussions between the MoF and TH for the process transfer of assets have been initiated and will be done in stages.
"This is to ensure a smooth returning process for all the assets."
Anwar said that back then, the then Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa had proposed for the MoF to take over TH, which was at the time facing financial problems.
"Now with the new management, it is more efficient and able to restore confidence in the pilgrimage fund, so the MoF is going to transfer back the assets."
When asked about the current value of the assets, Anwar said: "It is still being discussed with TH, hence we cannot announce it until it has been settled."
In 2018, TH transferred its underperforming assets at the book value of RM19.9 billion to a SPV under the purview of the MoF.