KUALA LUMPUR (July 8): Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng has criticised the government's refusal to disclose former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Tan Sri Azam Baki's shareholding records, urging Putrajaya to review the decision in the interest of transparency and public accountability.
Lim said the government's position that the records were not public documents and therefore could not be disclosed was "deeply disappointing".
"This is contrary to the basic tenets of transparency, public accountability and responsibility, and questions the government's commitment to root out corruption in all forms," Lim said in a statement on Wednesday.
Lim was responding to a parliamentary reply issued on Tuesday by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, who rejected a backbencher's request for details of Azam's shareholdings.
Azalina said the information was not a public document and formed part of investigation documents, personal information and asset declarations protected under existing laws.
She added that Azam's asset ownership and declarations, including his shareholdings, had been examined by a special task force and that appropriate action had been taken based on its findings.
Azam came under scrutiny over his share transactions between 2012 and 2016 after questions were raised over whether the value of his shareholdings exceeded the limit prescribed for civil servants under government regulations.
The controversy followed a Bloomberg report published in February this year on Azam's substantial shareholdings in financial services firm Velocity Capital Partner Bhd (KL:VELOCITY).
A three-member special task force chaired by Attorney General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar was subsequently established to investigate the matter, with its findings later presented to the Cabinet.
However, the investigation report has not been made public and no details of any action taken have been disclosed.
Meanwhile, Azam, who retired as MACC chief in May, remains a member of the National Anti-Financial Crime Centre. When the opposition raised questions about his presence at an NFCC advisory board meeting on June 30, the NFCC issued a statement saying he was appointed to the post for a three-year term in 2024 and will remain on its advisory board till Sept 19, 2027, unless it is ended earlier by the King.
Lim, who is also DAP adviser, urged the government to disclose whether any action had been taken following the task force's investigation.
"There is no justification to withhold such information when it concerns the integrity and honesty of the country's top anti-corruption officer," he said.
Separately, former law minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim also questioned Azalina's explanation, arguing that shareholdings in companies are recorded with the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM).
Zaid also questioned the need for confidentiality, saying the investigation had already been completed. "From an accountability perspective, the minister should have given a proper reply to a parliamentary question," Zaid said in a social media post.
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