Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Did VW offer to buy Proton's stake for RM1?

And someone made a lot of money out of the MV Agusta deal. Dr M could be pulling our leg when he said this morning that VW had offered to buy 51 per cent stake for RM1. But what's not a joke is that the people who bought MV Agusta from Proton for 1 euro (about RM4) made a bundle recently by selling Husqvarna, which was part of MV Agusta, for 93 million euro, to BMW.

The former PM had condemned the Proton administration for selling MV Agusta but the move was defended then by PM Abdullah Ahmad. Proton had bought MV Agusta for RM500 million when Tengku Mahaleel Ariff was the chief executive officer. Dr Mahathir said Gevi, the company that supposedly bought MV for RM4, was also a mystery as it was not listed on the Italian stock market.
"When they sold MV for RM4, I referred it to the Securities Commission. The SC said it was OK as Proton had assets of RM10 billion! But I don't know how much the assets are worth now. Can't be that much or VW wouldn't have offered to buy 51 per cent of Proton for only RM1. But I can't confirm this, of course."
At this point, Tengku Mahaleel stood up and informed the former PM that BMW had paid Husqvarna 93 million euros, which amounts to RM446 million after conversion, and not RM300 million.
Dr M: "My goodness!"
--- pause ---
Dr M: "Apa kira? What's another few million ringgit of losses? If we are going to lose money, why not lose a bit more?"

19 comments:

  1. Anonymous6:54 pm

    Return of the Master. NumeroUno

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  2. Anonymous7:32 pm

    In terms of bribing voters, why don't we do a little bit of investigation and name and shame them on line?

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  3. Anonymous8:52 pm

    What we need now is a Neutron to offset the Proton.

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  4. i think mamak can do business better. one roti canai KOSONG is RM 1, teh tarikh RM 1.00, two eggs RM2.00, just cost RM4 (1 euro), can buy mini Proton but now 51% Proton worth Rm1 again? Oh, The ringgiot value is so big..........

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  5. pak lah neither businessman nor business educated... what can be expected from the "most expensive brain in the world" - refer my blog, posting: Saya Bangga Menjadi Melayu

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  6. Anonymous4:22 am

    Sell PROTON for RM 1, but consultation fee(under table), 1 billion euro only.

    If not how to fund the election???

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  7. Anonymous7:43 am

    Just like the Port Klang Free Zone fiasco, sell Proton to Monkey (alias Beruk or monyet) King Sdn Bhd at RM1.00 and then later sell to VW at RM5billion.

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  8. Saudara Rocky's Bru,

    Mungkin (saya ulangi, mungkin) inilah antara kontradiksi dan kekangan di dalam hujah pemerintahan sekarang.

    Kalau permohonan rakyat jelata kepada jawapan tidak dilayan, saya curiga kalau pemerintah dan para pembesarnya mendengar keluhan rakyat seperti dimanterakan oleh mereka sendiri iaitu "beritahu saya", "bekerja dengan saya", "saya sedia ditegur" dan pelbagai lagi.

    Apa ertinya modal insan dan janji-janji mengenai ketelusan kalau tidak cukup peluang pekerjaan diwujudkan, pekerja diberhentikan kerana pembahagian kekayaan yang semakin hambar dan syarikat-syarikat kerajaan digabungkan dengan sewenang-wenangnya untuk menjana "market capilatisation" dan yuran yang lumayan kepada bank saudagar?

    Apa erti modal insan kalau ianya tidak cekap, kelam kabut, menyeleweng dan rasuah?

    Lihatlah perbalahan di dalam PDRM dan apa yang berlaku dengan penyiasatan oleh ACA, pendakwaan oleh Pendakwa Raya, Kamar Peguam Negara dan yang paling membimbangkan pelantikan Hakim Besar Malaya yang dipertikaikan oleh Majlis Raja-Raja.

    Lambat laun khabar buruk dak kesan negatifnya akan sampai juga kepada rakyat terbanyak walaupun media massa arus perdana tidak menghebahkannya.

    Fikirkan.

    Kita mungkin berkata: Siluncai terjun dengan labu-labunya, biarkan, biarkan!

    Tetapi apa kata seandainya labu-labu itu dan kandungannya adalah hak milik kita semua rakyat Malaysia yang kita amanahkan kepadanya?

    Terima kasih.

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  9. Anonymous9:04 am

    The Tun never used bribes?

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  10. Anonymous9:04 am

    Salam, Bro... daripada kawan lama.
    Bila dah tinggi di balik awan, semuanya selesa,
    tak nampak apa-apa d bawah sana. Bila dah rebah ke tanah,
    baru terbeliak biji mata,
    rupa-rupanya sampah bersepah di merata-rata.
    Barah tu dah lama ada, tapi kini dah mewabak. Patut dah lama dibedah. Sekarang terimalah musibahnya. Yang menjadi mangsa dulu dan kini, (dan selamanya?) rakyat jelata. Piiiirah!!

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  11. I started my driving with an Opel Kadette then I hopped on to the Ford Escort Ghia. When the National cars was launced I had the Saga and later the Wira. Just doing my bit for the nation. Kept all those cars for ten years at least and the Wira is still in my keep. A few years back I bought a Toyota Vios and realised what I had missed all these while - the joy of driving a non proton car with immaculate after sales service.
    My son followed in my track with a Satria then the Waja and recently he too switched to a Toyota - The Alphard.
    I guess it is difficult for the both of us to go back to using Proton cars be it the new Persona or whatever new releases.
    With the new management in Proton and the brouhaha over the sale of MV Augusta at 1 Euro, and lately there was an announcement that Husqurvana which is just a part of MV Augusta, was sold for Euro 93 million I think I have had enough of it. No more support from me and my family.
    It confirmed my earlier belief that these people are ripping off Proton. What Tengku Mahaleel was saying was right after all.
    Now there is the PKFZ looming which is almost similar in nature to what is happening in Proton in term of modus operandi.
    Making money is easy when you are in the right place and with the right connection. Especially more so with this person as PM. Only that it is always at the expense of the rakyat. This is the saddest part.

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  12. Man.

    Never thought reading your blog can be so depressing.

    Lepas satu, satu. PKFZ lah. Proton Debacle lah.

    Tiadakah keadilan di dunia ini!!@#$^$#&%&*(

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  13. Anonymous12:43 pm

    Anon 9.04 asked:

    The Tun never used bribes? No lah! Not now!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous4:51 pm

    Another Maha poli trick but judging from other comments above, it was very effective indeed to fool the ignorant masses.

    MV Agusta was not sold for just 1 euro, it was sold with all the liabilities that required immediate repayment, which Proton could not afford and neither did this Tengku do anything to enhance the value of MV Agusta throughout his tenure.

    The current sale was probably without liabilities coupled with the longer time frame to flog bits and pieces of it, surely there's better chance of securing higher price.

    If you want transparency maybe you all should also ask why on earth would a struggling carmaker without a motor bike division (like BMW) buy a motorbike company in the first place.

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  15. Anonymous5:28 pm

    For BMW Motorrad the acquisition of Husqvarna Motorcycles is a logical step in enhancing the company's activities in the field of light, sporty motorcycles, which has recently been reinforced with the new models of the BMW G 650 X series. Commenting on BMW's decision to acquire Husqvarna Motorcycles, Diess, General Director of BMW Motorrad, stated: "With the Husqvana models targeted at the sporty competition, we will be able to extend the BMW Motorrad range to include younger groups of customers as well as the entire off-road and supermoto sector much more quickly and effectively than with our core brand alone. This transaction also provides us with direct access to a worldwide sales network in the off-road segment."



    BMW Motorrad plans to continue operating Husqvarna Motorcycles as a separate enterprise. All development, sales and production activities, as well as the current workforce, will remain in place at its present location in the region of Varese in northern Italy.



    Just as BMW Motorrad, Husqvarna Motorcycles is steeped in tradition and one of the most renowned motorcycle companies in the world. Motorcycles were initially produced in Sweden from 1903 and in Italy from 1986. Today the company is one of the leading suppliers of sporty off-road motorcycles. In the course of its history, Husqvarna Motorcycles has achieved numerous international racing victories including European and World Championship titles.



    Husqvarna Motorcycles is part of the Italian company MV Agusta S.p.A. and produced some 12,000 motorcycles in the capacity range of 125 to 610 cc in 2006. The focus of the company's model program is on sporty off-road motorcycles which are equipped solely with single cylinder engines. Husqvarna Motorcycles employed a workforce of approximately 240 in Italy in 2006.

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  16. Anonymous8:48 pm

    I'm not disputing on the purchase of MV Agusta, coz i believe it is a right acquisition.

    Nevertheless, selling it at a EURO is just plain stupid.

    Anon 4.51 pm states that it was sold with a liability. Valid point. But if i am the Government of Malaysia with all the resources that I have (+ so called spectacular performance of Khazanah, Petronas and the gang), why shouldn't GOVT of MALAYSIA support Proton for at least 1 year so that WE CAN GET EURO 93 MILLION ?

    That's why i said "PLAIN STUPID".

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  17. Anonymous10:41 pm

    aiyo... rm 4 above the table. the rest under lah. you dont know? GE coming right...need the mulah to grease the monkeys.

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  18. Anonymous10:54 pm

    another thing. noticed the Klang thing has sort of disappeared.. off the radar...no news...4 pages in the star yesterday for the bus crash. Again today, more coverage about the bus...so and so minister angry about the bus crash, there will be investigation from here to the moon but bet you eveything will be blamed on the bus driver. not the police, not jpj not the ministers. semua don't know...sleeping on the job? one eye closed?

    Hello ministers, if you had done your job the bus would not have crashed.

    only in malaysia where the minister are so lucky that they have one disaster to cover up another disaster.

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  19. Anonymous11:16 pm

    Come on lah, Tun. You are speaking like someone who didn't buy votes to win elections. You had you kunchus doing it for you in the past. BN mastered this art during your time. Corruption was entrenched during your time. Gerrymandering was at its height during your administration. What is left now is YOUR legacy.

    The present government is simply continuing your legacy with much vim and enthusiasm, and new ways have been employed in the process.

    Tun, you have an agenda here, that's obvious. But please don't accuse the present government of doing what exactly you used to do.

    Be more innovative.

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