KUALA LUMPUR: Enforcement agencies have stepped up action following the release of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH), with investigations now focusing on individuals linked to alleged management irregularities at the institution.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had remanded five individuals to assist in investigations into various alleged misconduct uncovered in the 211-page report released on July 29.
Those remanded for between three and five days comprised individuals from various professional backgrounds, including a former plantation manager, a design company director, a deputy general manager for construction, an occupational safety and health manager and a project director of a statutory body’s property company.
Separately, the MACC Special Task Force detained the former chief executive officer and former chief financial officer of a statutory body on Aug 4 to facilitate investigations into alleged abuse of power involving a RM370mil share acquisition involving two plantation companies.
Meanwhile, the police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) has opened five investigation papers following nine reports lodged by TH, its subsidiaries and members of the public.
According to Bernama, CCID director Comm Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa said investigators were in the process of recording statements from witnesses in Malaysia and abroad, as well as obtaining relevant documents to complete the investigations.
The Inland Revenue Board has also begun investigating several individuals after detecting significant discrepancies between their ownership of luxury assets and their declared income.
It said its tax risk analysis had uncovered inconsistencies in the individuals’ income declarations, prompting raids to seize documents and for fact finding.
The RCI report, which examined TH’s operations between 2014 and 2020, highlighted numerous governance weaknesses and alleged excessive political interference in operations.
Among the report’s most striking findings was that TH should have recorded a nett loss of RM1.4bil for the 2017 financial year, but instead reported an extraordinary profit of RM3.4bil in its financial statements.
Following severe asset impairment, the report recommended forensic audits into several investment decisions involving PT TH Indo Plantations, Emrail Sdn Bhd, Wellspring Worldwide Limited, Abraj Sdn Bhd, Putrajaya Perdana Bhd, TH Plantations Bhd, TH Properties Sdn Bhd, Alam Maritim Resources/TH Marine, TH Hotel & Residences Sdn Bhd and FGV Bhd.
