PETALING JAYA: Damansara MP Tony Pua has denied threatening a property developer who had faced financial problems in a joint-venture with the government to develop a multibillion-ringgit complex in Kuala Lumpur, as alleged by former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in his new book.

       Describing it as false allegations, Pua, who was political secretary to then finance minister Lim Guan Eng, said this was not the first time Dr Mahathir had made this accusation.

       He said that in November 2018, Lim was summoned to Dr Mahathir’s office for a reprimand.

       “The problem is, I could never have ‘threatened’ the property developer because I have never personally met or spoken to the developer,” Pua said in a statement yesterday.

       According to Pua, the project concerned was Exchange 106, which was part of the controversial Tun Razak Exchange (TRX), a 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) legacy.

       He said he was tasked by Lim to monitor the progress and resolution of several issues pertaining to the RM3bil project.

       Pua claimed that the Treasury secretary-general and TRX City officials led all negotiations and discussions with the company.

       “I was never present at their discussions. I regret that Dr Mahathir is extremely selective in his memory.

       “It is unfortunate that he prefers to believe the words of an extremely crooked foreign tycoon, previously convicted of cheating hundreds of billions of rupiah from Bank Bali in 2009; and subsequently convicted again for forgery in 2020 and bribery in 2021.

       “Dr Mahathir should have been proud that his government had successfully protected the interest of the rakyat in this multibillion-ringgit scandal and recorded that achievement in his memoirs.

       “Instead, he has chosen to be petty and write about how he was able to put a stop to the lowly political secretary of the finance minister,” he added.