‘Dear Najib, you are wrong’
> EdgeProp chairman issues open letter over ex-PM’s criticism of FundMyHome scheme
PETALING JAYA: EdgeProp chairman Tong Kooi Ong ( pix) yesterday replied to a Facebook post by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak on the company’s crowdfunding scheme, FundMyHome (FMH).
In an open letter, Tong took Najib to task for saying, among others, that the scheme would not benefit the people.
“With respect, you are wrong. FMH was launched two days after Budget 2019 was tabled because EdgeProp is the initiator of the idea.
“We have thought long and hard in the past few years about finding a solution to help Malaysians, especially those with young families, who desire to own a home of their own instead of renting.
“After crystallising our idea, we took it to the government and have been engaging various regulators in the past several months, culminating in the idea being included when the Budget was tabled in Parliament on Nov 2,” Tong posted on the firm’s Facebook page.
FundMyHome does not require regulatory approval as the financing of the scheme is open only to institutions and not the retail public.
“Approval for retail public participation as investors will be required and we will work with regulators to have this done by the first quarter of 2019.”
Responding further to Najib’s post, Tong added: “Let me stress that this initiative came from the private sector and will not require any government funding, concessions or guarantees, as you had insinuated. “If you care to watch the video on the launch of FMH, you will realise this was clearly articulated by the prime minister, finance minister and myself.
“You also said that FMH will not benefit the people, but did not put forward any reasons. I will wait to read what they are and look forward to a discourse with you on this in future,” said Tong.
“FundMyHome is an innovative solution enabled by digital technology and the alignment of the interests of all stakeholders to help Malaysians own homes, at no cost to taxpayers.”
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