KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 9): The Human Resource Development Corporation (HRD Corp) is still under investigation, according to Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki.
Azam told reporters at an event on Monday that the commission had opened up a few files against HRD Corp and that all investigations are still ongoing, several news portals reported.
His clarification came after it was reported earlier that MACC investigators had told the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that no wrongdoing had been found at HRD Corp.
"We have opened an investigation paper,” Mohd Fuad Sedet, an investigation officer from the MACC, was quoted as saying in a PAC report on the government agency. “Based on our findings, no offences under the MACC Act were identified.”
Azam said the officer might have been referring to just one part of the MACC's investigations, which covered several aspects.
“We opened up a few files against HRD Corp. All investigations are still ongoing, and I have directed my officers to inform the PAC that the officer may have been referring to one of the files," he was quoted by The Star after being asked to clarify news reports that said the MACC had cleared HRD Corp of wrongdoing, based on what was told to the PAC in the report.
Following the release of the latest PAC report, the PAC also called on the MACC to explain its investigations into HRD Corp, which was "classified as no further action".
Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin, one of the 14 members of the bipartisan PAC, said the Auditor General's Report on HRD Corp had recommended enforcement actions against the agency, which Sim noted would not have been made without solid grounds.
“In fact, during the proceedings, the PAC also suspected the possibility of abuse of power within HRD Corp,” Sim said during a briefing session to the lower house of Parliament on Monday.
HRD Corp came under scrutiny in July after reports by the auditor general and the PAC had highlighted various instances of alleged mismanagement, including suspicious disbursements, questionable property transactions, and risky investments.
One of the key issues raised was HRD Corp’s involvement in dubious property deals, notably the purchase of a RM154 million six-storey building in Bangsar South without board approval.
Subsequently, the MACC initiated its probe on HRD Corp and deployed investigators to the agency's office to collect documents. The anti-graft agency had said it would focus its investigation on HRD Corp's investments, management of training funds, and property acquisitions.