Forensic probe proposed following TH case, says Anwar
SERDANG: A proposal for a forensic audit to be conducted into the management of Felda will be discussed by the Cabinet, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“We will bring it to the Cabinet meeting for discussion,” he told reporters after attending the national-level Maulidur Rasul celebration.
Anwar was responding to a suggestion by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that a forensic audit be conducted to determine whether there were power abuse, breach of trust or governance violations in Felda’s management.
Ahmad Zahid had said a management audit alone was insufficient, given that issues involving the agency had persisted for a long time and resulted in losses amounting to billions of ringgit.
Anwar had previously said that the government planned to investigate issues involving Felda after completing its investigation into Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH).
The Prime Minister had said the move came after His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, told him that investigations into institutions owned by the people should not end with TH.
A task force set up to investigate the matter has begun its work, with its findings expected to be presented to the Cabinet before being made public, similar to the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on TH.
On another matter, Anwar, who is the Pakatan Harapan chairman, said the coalition’s election director Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari has been given the mandate to work out the proposed cooperation between Pakatan and Barisan Nasional for the Melaka election.
“We have given Amir (Amirudin) the responsibility to work it out,” said Anwar.
Asked about the possibility of cooperation between political parties in the Melaka polls, he said cooperation was important in administration.
“Room for cooperation ... in life, we must cooperate. This is all about cooperation,” he said briefly.
Anwar was previously reported to have said that the Pakatan Harapan election committee would discuss the possibility of cooperation with Barisan for the Melaka polls.
The committee is led by Amirudin and Pakatan secretary-general Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
