KUALA LUMPUR (July 24): The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has denied claims by Datuk Justin Lim Hwa Tat that the anti-graft agency did not issue a notice to the chief executive officer of Sersol Bhd about assisting in an investigation.
In a statement on Monday (July 24), the MACC said it had tried to track Lim down by visiting two homes and an office here, and another office in Johor on June 26 to issue the notice, but Lim was not at any of these locations. The agency found that one of the two homes was already sold, while Lim was not residing in the other property.
"The result of MACC's checks with the Immigration Department of Malaysia shows that [Lim] left the country in February, and there were no records of his return to the country.
"Following this, the MACC had issued a press statement on July 12, complete with the investigating officer's telephone number and email address to track [Lim] down, and that statement is a formal and valid notice," it added.
The agency said it is ready to face any legal action from Lim regarding the matter, but stressed that he must first come forward to cooperate with the investigation.
Lim is under investigation by the MACC over his instructions and approval of five payments totalling RM2.5 million to a private company named HGC Legacy Enterprise.
Sersol said the purpose of the payments, which were recorded as deposits during April and May 2023, has yet to be made known to its board.
On Sunday, Lim issued a statement that the MACC had neither attempted to serve the notice requiring his attendance for any statement recording nor contacted him to seek his help in the investigations.
“Despite my absence, I have every intention of fully cooperating with the authorities in any matter where my assistance is required,” he stated, adding that he had been away on business since early February 2023.
Lim had also appointed Messrs Gobind Singh Deo & Co as his legal representative during the course of the investigations.
Meanwhile, Sersol announced last Friday that it had issued a misconduct notice on Lim, demanding that he return to the office within one week.
The chemical manufacturer said Lim had gone overseas "for purpose and reason only known to him" and ordered that he immediately give a written response to the board.