S'gor govt directive unlawful, says A-G
2009/08/17
PUTRAJAYA, Mon: The Selangor government's circular prohibiting state officials from giving statements to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) after office hours is null and void, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said.
"The MACC's function is governed by certain laws. We're going to file an application in court for a declaration that the directive is null and void. As far as the law is concerned, this is purely unlawful.
"I will file the application within this week," he told a joint news conference with Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz after the opening of the 48th Asian-African Legal Consultative Organisation (AALCO) annual session, here today.
Meanwhile, Nazri said the Selangor government's action could be construed as an attempt to obstruct MACC officers from performing their duties.
"No circular from any state government can prevent the MACC from carrying out their the independent investigations. I think this is an attempt by Khalid (Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim) to obstruct MACC officers from discharging their duties," Nazri said.
-- Bernama
MACC vows to fight on
So said MACC deputy chief commissioner Datuk Abu Kassim Mohamed.
“The law entrusts the MACC to battle corruption. Until there is a change to this law, we will not stop our fight against corrupt practices,” Abu Kassim told Malay Mail.
“The law also states that any person can be investigated for corruption. Whether they are politicians, businessmen or NGOs, as long as there is corruption involved, they will be investigated.”
Abu Kassim’s comments came in response to a statement made by MACC director of investigations Datuk Mohd Shukri Abdull on Saturday.
Shukri, frustrated with constant criticisms and public opinion of MACC, said the MACC will stop probing politicians indefinitely.
“I totally understand Shukri’s concern, and why he came up with the comment,” said Abu Kassim.
“I share his frustration too. We have not been having it easy from everyone.”
Shukri spoke about how difficult it was for him and his men to carry out their jobs well in cases involving politicians as they were being condemned by various parties regardless of what they did.
He added that he would suggest a new separate mechanism for the handling of corruption cases that involved politicians.
Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin also commented on Shukri’s statement saying that the MACC should not differentiate investigations on politicians and the common public.
He also said that everyone, including politicians, should give their full cooperation to MACC in its investigations to ensure the process runs smoothly.
“I agree with what Muhyiddin has said,” said Abu Kassim. “We need a strong show of support from all walks of life for what we are doing. Currently, we are not getting enough of it.”
The level of mistrust of the MACC reached an all-time low following the tragic death of Teoh Beng Hock, the political aide to Selangor State exco Ean Yong Hian Wah.
Last month, Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim issued a directive to all officers and assemblymen to not go to the MACC office if they were called in for questioning or to have their statements recorded.
Khalid said the questioning should be done at the State assemblymen’s respective offices for “safety reasons”.
On Aug 10, Malay Mail highlighted how Wong Chuan How, the special assistant to State exco Ronnie Liu, played a game of hide-and-seek with the MACC by not answering his handphone.
Wong was called for questioning by the MACC to facilitate its probe into the alleged abuse of State funds.
Abu Kassim also took a swipe at certain parties who were being investigated by MACC, whose decisions to call in the Press to highlight their investigations in the media baffled him.
“There are some people who are under investigation by MACC who would call in the media for a Press conference, as well as allow the media to view the investigation process,” said Abu Kassim.
“I find this ‘new phenomenon’ rather ‘weird’.
“Previously, nobody wanted to let the public know they were being investigated for corruption. Now, they want to publicise it. I cannot understand this rather strange new trend.
“I hope it doesn’t continue as it jeopardises our investigations.MACC chief: We carry on
2009/08/17
By Farrah Naz Karim
PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission will continue going after corrupt politicians despite the challenges and resistance the agency faces.
Chief Commissioner Datuk Seri Ahmad Said Hamdan said this in putting to rest questions raised following a statement by his investigations director, Datuk Shukri Abdull, that the anti-graft body would stop investigating politicians.
Ahmad Said slammed the Pakatan Rakyat, particularly the DAP, for hampering the commission from doing its job.
He said the DAP's constant barrage of negative stories about the MACC, whenever investigations focused on its party members, was affecting the commission's image.
"DAP has been putting on an opera for the longest time and it has never been co-operative.
"But all this will not dampen our spirit and we will not stop our investigations. They have been saying that we do not probe those from Umno ... that is gutter talk."
Ahmad Said said although scores of politicians from the Barisan Nasional had been investigated by the MACC, it had not received the kind of reaction that had been seen coming from the DAP.
On Shukri's statement, he said it was a personal opinion.
"He spoke to me about it and told me about how he felt after dealing with all this during 25 years in service."
Shukri blamed attacks, accusations of bias, negative public perception and the immense pressure on the MACC for his decision.
Selangor MB's directive on MACC queries is not legal, Nazri
By DHARMENDER SINGH
PUTRAJAYA: Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim’s instruction to all state representatives to meet with Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officers only at the state secretariat and not give statements after 6pm is not legally binding, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz.
Nazri said the state government could not issue directives that appeared to be setting limits on independent investigations being conducted by agencies like the MACC and any such directive would be deemed as an effort to obstruct a government official from executing his duties.
He said he felt that the directive issued by the Selangor Mentri Besar recently was an attempt to pressure and scare the MACC officers against investigating state government representatives for corruption.
“I have told the MACC that its officers should carry out their work without fear or favour and not allow anyone to intimidate them while they are carrying out their duties.
“I have also asked the Attorney-General to make doubly sure (the validity of the directive by Khalid) from a legal standpoint,” he told reporters after launching the 48th Annual Session of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organisation here Monday.
Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail, who was also present during the press conference, said his chambers would be filing an application in court this week to seek a declaration that the directive was null and void.
He said the issue now was whether the directive by Khalid ran contrary to the country’s laws.
“The MACC’s functions are governed by certain laws so this directive is purely an administrative direction and I have decided with my colleagues that within this week we will file an application to declare it null and void,” he said.
He also said that there should not be any action by anyone to discourage the MACC from doing its work because the enemy that it was fighting was the crime and not any organisation.
Nazri said the move by Khalid also showed that Pakatan Rakyat failed to practise what it preached after having accused the federal government of fully controlling the MACC and now itself trying to control the commission when its members were being investigated.
He said Barisan Nasional had many of its members including himself investigated by the MACC but the party never tried to stop the investigations, resist arrest or interfere because it saw MACC as independent agency.
“I feel they are trying (to use the wild accusations against MACC) to divert attention from the embarrassment they are facing following accusations of corrupt practices among their leaders and state executive councillors.
“The DAP especially used to blame all the corruption on Barisan because we were in power but now that they are in the state governments it has become clear that they are not free from corrupt practices either,” he said, adding that the Opposition should allow the MACC to conduct its investigations freely if it had nothing to hide.
He also said that he did not believe that the MACC officers had intentionally injured Wong Chuan How, the aide to Selangor exco member Ronnie Liu, as they had no reason to get physical with him while conducting investigations.
Nazri also hit out at DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang over claims that the MACC was only investigating Chinese suspects for corruption and said the remarks showed that Kit Siang was blind to the happenings around him and was a racist.
“Did he not see the arrest (of an assemblyman recently for allegedly accepting over RM20,000 in bribes) in Terengganu and the many who were investigated during the Umno general assembly - did anyone question why so many Malays were being investigated then?” he said.
source : thestar.com
Bkt Aman quizzes Ronnie Liu and Ean Yong’s staff
SHAH ALAM: Police from Bukit Aman recorded the statements of clerks working for state executive councillors Ronnie Liu and Ean Yong Hian Wah over accusations posted by Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong in his blog.
Commercial Crimes Investigations officer Supt Mohamad Osman took two hours to finish the questioning at the state secretariat building here on Monday.
Wee had accused state executive councillors of being involved in criminal activities, although he did not name them on his blog.
Last Friday, Wee was called to the Selangor police contingent headquarters to have his statement recorded over his allegations.
He told reporters then that he had revealed to the police the name of the exco member and several other people related to the case.
In another investigation last month, Ean Yong’s political secretary Teoh Beng Hock was taken in for questioning by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to assist into its investigations of alleged abuse of constituency funds by certain state assemblymen,
Teoh was found dead the next day near the Commission’s office. An inquest is currently being conducted to determine what had led to the death.
Wee gives statement over exco member’s business activities
SHAH ALAM: Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong was called to the Selangor police contingent headquarters to have his statement recorded over allegations that an exco member was involved in underground activities.
He said he revealed to the police the name of the exco member and several other people related to the case.
“But at this moment, I can’t reveal the exco member’s name but it will come to light,” he told reporters yesterday after recording his statement.
Wee, who met police at 12.30pm, showed a black canvas bag to the press and said the information was in it.
He came out two hours later and told the media that his contacts would give him more evidence regarding the claims, and that would be handed to the police in due time.
Wee had alleged in his blog last Saturday that the office of a certain exco member was used as a meeting place for people with ‘underground’ business activities.
Liu then asked Wee to name the so-called state exco member.
Wee also questioned why Liu took offence to his allegations that an exco member was involved in underground activities and in doing that he had indirectly identified himself to the case.
Meanwhile, a China Press journalist lodged a police report against Liu for allegedly defaming her and the newspaper.
Klang bureau chief Kuan Kam Chee, 47, lodged the report with the Klang police yesterday afternoon after reading an online news portal article which quoted Liu as saying that she and her newspaper published a false article about him.
“No where in my article, published on July 13, did I ever mention his name or others,” she said
Kuan said she had been a journalist for 25 years and was experienced enough to know what she was doing.
She said she was interviewed by police for five hours and submitted a letter and an article to the police.
Kuan had on July 13 published an article claiming that a poison pen letter was being circulated in Klang and Pandamaran.
The poison pen letter alleged that a state assemblyman was involved in underworld activities and she wrote the article based on it.
Yesterday, Liu said he would cooperate with the police if the authorities wanted him to explain the issue.
Selangor police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said police were investigating the case based on a newspaper report.
Teoh Inquest Day 9: 'Facial injuries may be due to beating'
02:00pm: Inquest adjourns to Tuesday morning after intesne questioning of the various injuries noted in the post mortem.
12:49pm: Malik Imtiaz put forward a hypothesis; that Teoh was surrounded by individuals - a form of scare tactic - before he fell. When he fell someone grabbed his hand and snapped his wristwatch as the watch is yet to be found.
Malik: Is there a possibility that the scratches on Teoh's wrist could have been caused by someone who held the wrist with the watch?
Khairul: Yes, there is a possibility
12:25pm: Dr Khairul says there is a possibility that the injuries on Teoh's face could have been caused by beating.
11:47am: To a question by Malik, Dr Khairul says that Teoh was conscious when he fell, based on spasm signs in his left hand. This indicates he had tried to grab something when he fell.
11.33am Court resumes. Khairul takes stand again. Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, representing Selangor government is questioning him.
10:47am Coroner's court takes a break.
10:10am: Dr Khairul complains to Coroner that Gobind is "playing with words", after persistent questioning by Gobind. Gobind retorts that he asked straight questions five times but did not get straight answers.
10:00am: Gobind says that as Dr Khairul had not interviewed MACC officers, he was not privy to evidence that excluded the possibility of homicide. But Dr Khairul insists that there was no evidence of homicide.
09:50am: Gobind asks Dr Khairul why he did not question MACC officers. Dr Khairul responded that it was not his job and he relied on information from the police.
09:40am: Dr Khairul says he questioned three of Teoh's family members - brother, younger sister and fiance - to determine if Teoh had any psychological, medical, drug or smoking problem. The family members had told him that Teoh did not have any of those problems.
09:31am: Dr Khairul agrees with Gobind's suggestion that a psychological background check on Teoh was important to determine if the cause of death was suicide.
09:15am: 10th witness Dr Khairul Azman Ibrahim, senior consultant from Forensic Department of Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah, Klang, takes the stand again and is examined by Gobing Singh.
09:13am: Coroner’s court convenes for ninth day of inquest.
SHAH ALAM: The inquest into the death of Teoh Beng Hock enters its ninth day.
Teoh, 30, who was political secretary to Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah, was found dead on July 16 on the fifth floor corridor of Plaza Masalam, after giving a statement in an investigation into alleged abuse of state government funds.
The Coroner is Azmil Mustapha Abas and Tan Hock Chuan is the lawyer appointed by the Government to assist the Coroner.
Gobind Singh Deo is holding a watching brief for Teoh’s family while Malik Imtiaz Sarwar is representing the Selangor government.
Related Stories:
Pathologist: Teoh may have jumped
Gobind tears into suicide theory
Teoh inquest Day 8: Pathologist says Teoh may have committed suicide
Teoh inquest (Day 7): Possibility that Teoh was dragged (Update)
Pathologist: Teoh' s death caused by fall
Teoh death inquest: Day 6
source : thestar.com
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