PETALING JAYA: Law minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar says the issue over the share ownership of Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki has been resolved.
He was responding to a parliamentary question from Lim Lip Eng (PH-Kepong), who asked how many agencies were involved in investigating Azam and the status of the investigations.
Wan Junaidi said the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) had decided that there was no case, while Azam had been queried by three different MACC committees over the matter.
They included the Anti-Corruption Advisory Board (ACAB), the special committee on corruption (JKMR) and the complaints committee (JKA).
“There is no need for the issue of the MACC chief’s share ownership to be disputed. The MACC chief has also taken legal action against those who have slandered him and the case is in the courts. Any comments on this case would be sub judice.
“The government does not protect or take action against certain individuals simply to satisfy certain parties. Anyone who is responsible for wrongdoing will be brought to justice and the courts will determine if they are guilty or not.
“With that, all parties need to accept the SC’s decision which explains that there is no case against the MACC chief over the matter,” he said in his written reply.
Previously, home minister Hamzah Zainudin confirmed that police were investigating Azam’s share ownership, despite the SC’s decision that it could not conclusively establish if the MACC chief had broken the law.
Azam is alleged to have bought millions of shares and warrants in public-listed companies with a value over the RM100,000 cap on equity holdings by civil servants.
ACAB chairman Abu Zahar Ujang previously said he was satisfied with Azam’s explanation that his brother, Nasir, had used his account to purchase shares that were later transferred to Nasir’s account.
On Jan 18, the SC said it could not prove any breaches under Section 25 (4) of the Securities Industry (Central Depositories) Act 1991 (Sicda) in relation to the ownership of shares in Azam’s trading accounts.
Section 25 (4) of Sicda states that a trading account must be opened in the name of the beneficial owner or the authorised nominee.
The local capital market regulator said that after concluding its inquiry and based on the evidence gathered, it was unable to conclusively establish that a breach under Sicda had occurred.
Azam then said the SC had effectively cleared him of wrongdoing, vowing to carry on leading the anti-graft agency to combat corruption.
Wan Junaidi’s reply came after his deputy, Mas Ermieyati Samsudin, told the Dewan Rakyat yesterday that police were still investigating the case, despite the SC’s decision.-FMT