Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has urged all parties, particularly the opposition, not to politicise BlackRock’s purported involvement in the restructuring of Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB).
He said while everyone has the right to disagree with the government, they should not undermine its efforts in raising issues concerning Gaza.
“Do not use this issue (BlackRock) because the issue (the attacks in Gaza) should unite us. Criticise me if you must, no problem. But if it’s to grandstand and show they are more heroic, then who allowed Israeli companies to operate here in the first place?” he said.
He told reporters this after performing Friday prayers at the Tun Abdul Aziz Mosque today.
Anwar said the government has taken a firm stance to cancel collaborations with all companies operating in Israel.
However, he said similar actions currently cannot be taken against Israeli-linked companies operating in other countries to ensure the national economy remains unaffected.
“I have decided to cancel cooperation with all Israeli companies operating from Israel…but for companies with operations in America, Germany, and China, that are linked to Israel, we are unable to cancel at this time as it would impact our economy.
“So while I will staunchly advocate for and defend the Palestinian people, particularly in Gaza, I do not want to weaken our country’s economic strength. If a company is from Israel, I remain firm,” Anwar said.
The opposition has alleged that BlackRock, a firm purportedly linked to Israel, has taken up stakes in MAHB.
Earlier, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) reiterated that BlackRock Inc was not in any way involved in the transaction relating to MAHB’s privatisation through the Gateway Development Alliance (GDA) consortium.
GIP head of transport Phil Iley said in January that the international infrastructure company was being acquired by BlackRock, an American asset management company with pro-Israeli links, with the transaction expected to be completed in the third quarter of this year.
Following this, several parties voiced objections and concerns over the proposed sale of a 30 per cent stake in MAHB to GIP.
Previously, Khazanah Nasional Bhd reportedly announced that it was leading a consortium known as GDA in a conditional voluntary offer to buy all shares in MAHB that it did not own.
Besides GIP through GIP Aurea Pte Ltd, the consortium’s shareholders also included the Employees Provident Fund and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia).