The Hunt for Red October, a Hollywood bestseller with its tale of intrigue, skullduggery and deception. Back in our motherland, Malaysia, a fascinating conspiracy theory had been woven around this episode and gained traction, linking the submarine deal with Altantuya’s murder. Hardly surprising since it had all the ingredients of a Hollywood techno-thriller — stories of alleged corruption, deceit, greed, sex and murder.
In
April, reports in the Spanish and French mainstream media questioned Suaram’s
almost fanatical obsession with the case, with one even suggesting that the
French legal system was being taken for a ride to serve a greater political
end.
Last Friday, Suaram held a fundraising dinner in Petaling Jaya to raise money for its activities, in which fresh allegations were made into the case. After months of trying, the New Straits Times secured an exclusive interview with the central figure in the deal.
Last Friday, Suaram held a fundraising dinner in Petaling Jaya to raise money for its activities, in which fresh allegations were made into the case. After months of trying, the New Straits Times secured an exclusive interview with the central figure in the deal.
“I am willing to
swear on my holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, that I did not know this person,
that she was never part of the team, had never met her, that she was never in
France during the entire time we were there trying to close the deal and only knew
about her when I read the papers in 2006 that they had found her body.”
One
of the myths that has been “accepted” as gospel was that Altantuya had acted as
a translator for Abdul Razak Baginda, who had helped Chahl broker the deal.
Negotiations began in 2000 and were concluded in 2002. If Altantuya was indeed
Razak Baginda’s interpreter, she should have been present at all the meetings
from 2000. And yet, in official French documents that were made available to
the NST, the French police have stated categorically that Altantuya never
entered France from 1999 to 2006, the year she died.
So,
if indeed the team needed an interpreter, it didn’t have to look very far, and
certainly not in Mongolia, of all places. In his deposition to the French
authorities in 2010, former DCNS marketing manager for Malaysia and Singapore
at the time, Fredric Faura, told investigators that there was no need for an
interpreter since negotiations were in English and Malaysians were fluent in
the language.
“This whole affair was a personal
matter between Razak Baginda and Altantuya. His dealings with her had nothing
to do with the Scorpene deal. It’s unfortunate that it coincided with our
timeline (the submarine deal). Razak Baginda was the only common denominator in
this. He was the only link, and a tenuous one, at best.”
‘Everything
was audited’
 |
ONE of the major
issues in the Scorpene submarine deal has to do with the word “commission”. Specifically, the Euro115 million
(RM452 million) that was paid to Perimekar Sdn Bhd, the company in charge of
the logistics and the training of the officers and men of the Royal Malaysian
Navy’s Submarine Force. And Jasbir Singh Chahl has a big problem with that.
“The amount is
actually a service management fee,” says Chahl.
Who is Jasbir Chahl?
mantra: Well readers, ask Suaram how they spend all the contributions collected and get an audited explanation please!
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