KUALA LUMPUR: Former Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim has not been charged with taking, misappropriating or misusing RM193.5mil in TH funds for himself or his family, says his legal team.
Lawyer Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad said the charge against Abdul Azeez concerned an allegation that he had used his position to obtain the chairmanship of Putrajaya Perdana Bhd.
“The charge does not concern any alleged misappropriation or misuse of TH funds for the benefit of our client or his family members,” he said in a statement.
Amer said the RM193.5mil mentioned in the charge represented the value of TH’s investment in Putrajaya Perdana Bhd.
“It is not an amount alleged to have been paid to, taken by, or deposited into the personal accounts of our client or any member of his family,” he said.
Abdul Azeez, who was charged at the Sessions Court on Sept 8, has pleaded not guilty and maintained that the charge was untrue.
The lawyer also addressed social media posts alleging that sums of money were held in TH accounts belonging to Abdul Azeez's wife and children.
He said the savings in those accounts had “no connection whatsoever” with the charge faced by Abdul Azeez and were not TH funds.
“The mere fact that monies are held in a TH account does not mean that those monies originated from TH,” he said.
Amer said the accounts and the money in them had previously been investigated by the authorities, but the funds were never forfeited.
He added that there had been no finding that the money constituted TH funds misappropriated by Abdul Azeez or proceeds from unlawful activity.
Amer also said the Royal Commission of Inquiry report on TH contained no finding that Abdul Azeez had misappropriated or taken money belonging to TH for himself or his family.
“Accordingly, any portrayal or insinuation that the savings held in the TH accounts of our client’s family members were monies ‘taken’ from TH, or that the RM193.5 million had been channelled to our client or his family, is inaccurate,” he said.
Amer urged all parties to report the matter based on the facts and actual contents of the charge, while respecting the presumption of innocence until the court determines the case.
He said Abdul Azeez and his family members also reserved all their rights, including taking appropriate legal action against anyone who publishes or disseminates false, misleading or defamatory statements concerning the matter.
