We weren’t part of casino talks, says Genting

PETALING JAYA: Genting Malaysia Bhd says neither the company nor its deputy chairman and chief executive Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay participated in talks with the government about opening a casino in Forest City, Johor.

The company denied claims made in a Bloomberg report on Thursday that Lim was involved in discussions with the government last week on operating the casino.

Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Berjaya Corp Bhd (BCorp) had also denied the report, which claimed discussions were held to discuss the opening of the casino at Forest City.

“Genting Malaysia Bhd wishes to state that neither the company nor Tan Sri Lim was involved in any such discussions or meetings and the claims made are untrue,” Genting Malaysia said in a statement.

It also urged all parties to immediately cease publication and dissemination of the misinformation, remove the claims and to provide necessary clarification to the public to prevent further confusion.

“Genting Malaysia Bhd shall not hesitate to take further action deemed necessary to protect its interests and its stakeholders,” it said.

Anwar had also earlier affirmed that there were no plans to issue the country’s second casino licence to Forest City.“Those who raised the issue of a casino licence lied. It is not true. That’s a lie,” said Anwar.

BCorp had said the article included “inaccurate information” that misrepresented its supposed involvement in discussions with the Prime Minister regarding the Forest City project.

The company’s statement said BCorp founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan had not participated in any such discussions and refute the inaccurate claims presented in the article.

Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi had also refuted the report that there will be a casino opening in the state.“The rumour is seen as an act of sabotage with an ill intention to taint the name of Forest City and Johor,” Onn Hafiz said in a statement.