MACC chief vows to review controversial cases that were closed, labelled ‘no further action’
GEORGE TOWN, July 23 — Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Latheefa Koya will be reviewing all controversial cases handled by the graft agency, including those involving political leaders and well-known personalities.
She said there were a number of high profile cases that were closed or labelled ‘no further action’ and promised to review each and every single case.
“I have called for all files of these cases to be brought to me and I will need time to go through all these files; I need to understand why it was closed but to do this, I will need time,” she said in a press conference at the MACC headquarters here today.
Asked about Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s bungalow case, where he was acquitted by the court, she said the case had already gone to court and as such, was deemed resolved.
“It doesn’t make sense to review it unless there are new evidences or issues, as it was resolved through the court,” she said.
On procedures to ensure integrity in government agencies and companies dealing in public projects involving public funds, she said there was an existing directive for all government departments and government-linked corporations (GLC) to absorb one integrity officer in each entity.
“A directive was issued in 2014 that all GLCs and government department needed to have one integrity officer in their departments and they will have access to minutes and all board meetings to know what is going on,” she said.
She said these integrity officers will be fully-trained, high-level officers from the MACC and they will be sent to these departments and the GLCs on a rotation basis.
”All departments should be under suspicion; all departments dealing with public funds should be probed and monitored,” she said.
She said there should also be an integrity officer in all projects that involved public funds.
“The companies handling these projects will need to write to us and request for an integrity officer and we will send an officer to monitor the project,” she said.
She said the onus should be on the companies to request for an integrity officer to be based in their companies with full access to their minutes, meetings and accounts.
On the alleged graft case involving a Sessions Court judge in Kuala Kubu Baru, she said there is a possibility of more similar cases.
“We are sure this is not just one case. It is a very serious case, involving high-level officers from the police up to the deputy public prosecutor to the judge,” she said.
She said the arrest of the judge along with eight others in the whole justice eco-system should send a message to others that MACC meant business.
A 45-year-old Sessions court judge was remanded for two days today after he was arrested yesterday over graft allegations.
He was among several police personnel, a lawyer and a deputy public prosecutor who were arrested in connection with the charging and release of 15 illegal immigrants.
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