GEORGE TOWN: A total of 51 individuals have been arrested so far in connection with the false claims and misappropriation of incentives under the PenjanaKerjaya programme.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said as of now a total of 62 investigation papers have been initiated to investigate the scandal involving the RM100mil.
"The status of the investigation is still ongoing and we might take some time to complete it," he said during a dialogue session at Vouk Hotel on Thursday (Sept 29).
Azam said the investigation took a while as each of the individuals was thoroughly investigated and every allegation and witness statement must be verified and attached to their separate case file.
He however said MACC were expected to complete the investigation in a month before referring it to the Attorney General.
When asked if any of the investigated suspects came from political parties, Azam said none of them was related to any political parties and most of them were companies that took the opportunities to abuse the fund.
"I would say it is daylight robbery allegedly committed by them. The alleged criminals can see any opportunity to abuse the government assistance supposedly to help those affected in the pandemic," he said.
On Wednesday (July 13), the MACC announced that it had launched an operation to investigate allegations of false claims and misappropriation of incentives under the PenjanaKerjaya programme.
Code-named Ops Hire, the operation is being conducted simultaneously nationwide.
PenjanaKerjaya was announced by then prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin under the National Economic Recovery Plan, offering financial incentives of between RM600 and RM1,000 to employers for each employee or apprentice employed for up to six months.
In a separate matter, Azam said the investigation into the Court of Appeal judge Justice Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali has been completed.
He however decline to elaborate further on the matter as the matter was still in the hands of the Attorney General's Chambers.
"We have completed the investigation, but I am not at the liberty to comment on that matter," he said.
Justice Mohd Nazlan was the judge who convicted former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak over the misappropriation of RM42mil of SRC International Sdn Bhd funds.
In his Federal Court appeal, Najib argued that Nazlan had a serious conflict of interest when presiding over the trial.
Najib lost the appeal and is currently serving his sentence at Kajang prison.
