LEMBAGA Tabung Haji (TH) must be transparent and accountable to its contributors over the purchase of a billion ringgit commercial building in the United Kingdom, opposition lawmakers said. 

They said given the uncertainty of the UK’s post-Brexit future, the investment may not yield good returns. 

They added that the pilgrimage fund should have invested locally instead to create jobs and improve the economy. 

Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah said there is a need for TH to divulge whether it had purchased the building at market value. 

“Purchasing the building is not a problem, the issue is transparency,” Chin told The Malaysian Insight.

“Was it bought at market value, over market or under market value? We don’t know this. TH has to be accountable to its contributors.”

Chin said if the purpose was to make a profit and pay dividends, then the pilgrimage board needs to justify its return on investments.

“TH holds haj money, it has to be accountable to the people it pays dividend to. Will this investment lower or increase their dividends?” 

It is also strange TH decided to purchase the building when the ringgit has depreciated significantly, she said. 

Yesterday, TH said that it bought a RM1.3 billion commercial building in London to expand its commercial portfolio.

The building, known as Great Minster, at 33, Horseferry Road, Victoria, was purchased for £247.5 million (RM1.3 billion) from Singapore-listed property firm Sinar Mas Land on July 12. The acquisition was filed with the Singapore Exchange.

TH chief executive officer Amrin Awaluddin said the property would yield long-term returns by way of rent and maintenance fees, which would increase by the year. 

The offices are fully leased to the British Secretary of State for Transport until 2033.

TH said that 11% of its funds, or RM88 billion, are allocated to investment in overseas properties. 

Slumped UK market 

DAP lawmaker Charles Santiago said that the new investment may not be practical given the UK’s economic climate. 

“The UK market slumped as a result of Brexit. 

“We don’t know what the future of the UK will look like. It might not be a good idea to invest in a country like that,” Santiago said. 

He also questioned whether the purchase was sanctioned by the Finance Ministry and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob. 

“These are public funds. Just because it (TH) has the funds, it’s not an opportunity to keep spending.” 

Meanwhile, Muda vice-president Teo Lee Ken questioned whether TH had consulted its contributors over such a large investment. 

“How was such a decision reached to invest such a huge sum in London? Was this communicated to depositors?” Teo asked. 

“Already, TH’s investments under Urusharta Jamaah hasn’t recovered from its losses. There should be more transparency and accountability.”

In 2018, the Minister of Finance Inc set up a special purpose vehicle to acquire the underperforming assets of TH for RM19.9 billion, in a move to revive the pilgrimage fund. 

Teo said the fund should have considered investing locally instead of abroad. 

“GLCs (government-linked companies) such as Tabung Haji should also consider investing locally to create dignified jobs for young people instead of continuing to invest abroad, to improve the economic well-being of the nation and not only its shareholder value.” – July 23, 2022.