Anwar says Tabung Haji royal inquiry report release pending procedures, abuses uncovered

Tuesday 29 Sep 2026

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KUALA LUMPUR (July 23): Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government is prepared to release the long-awaited report on Lembaga Tabung Haji subject to customary procedures.

He said Chief Secretary Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar would need to be consulted to determine whether the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report could be made public immediately or whether it must first be tabled before the Cabinet.

"If it is not necessary [for a Cabinet meeting], I will release it today. If Cabinet approval is required, I will wait until Wednesday's meeting because the people deserve to know," he said.

The RCI was established in 2022 to investigate the management and operations of Tabung Haji amid concerns over an estimated RM11 billion gap between the asset and liability and compliance with the law governing the pilgrims fund board.

To restore the fund's financial position, non-performing assets were transferred to Urusharta Jamaah Sdn Bhd. The special-purpose vehicle wholly owned by the Minister of Finance Inc issued RM19.6 billion in sukuk and injected RM300 million into Tabung Haji.

Anwar was speaking to reporters on Thursday after officiating the launch of the Humane Economy Global Discourse 2026.

He said the government had initially intended to publish the report after receiving it but decided to proceed cautiously because the priority at the time was restoring confidence in Tabung Haji.

"We had to exercise caution because we were in the process of transforming the management and correcting irregularities,” Anwar said. “There were certainly serious breaches of many rules. I cannot say corruption, but there were major abuses.”

The concern then was that publishing the report could trigger another run on Tabung Haji deposits, he noted.

Edited ByJason Ng

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