TOP 2 MEN TOLD TO LEAVE AS OVERSEAS ARRESTS LOOM: NAJIB FORCES MACC REVAMP TO STAVE OFF CORRUPTION CHARGES

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Abu Kassim Mohamed is to be replaced soon and his replacement is believed to be a senior officer from the Attorney-General's Chambers.

Sources familiar with the matter indicate that Abu Kassim had been pressured by the Prime Minister's Office to vacate his post. He will step down on Aug 1.

To make matters worse, deputy chief commissioner Mohd Sukri Abdull is also said to be retiring next month, while three key MACC panels have been left in limbo.

The Operations Review Panel (ORP) and the Consultation and Corruption Prevention Panel (CCPP) have been left vacant since Feb 24, while the Special Committee in the Prevention of Corruption became vacant last month.

The ORP is said to be critical of attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali's decision to clear Prime Minister Najib Razak and it wanted further investigations, including the MACC being granted Mutual Legal Assistance powers to conduct overseas investigations.

Meanwhile, the CCPP was against the controversial move to transfer two senior officers out of MACC last July - Special Investigation division head Bahri Md Zin and corporate communications unit head Rohaizad Yaakob.

Rumours of Abu Kassim’s quitting, whose contract was supposed to last until 2018, began circulating earlier this year.

Anti-corruption watchdog Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) executive director Cynthia Gabriel has recently called for the chief commissioner to be given security of tenure to ensure the person could carry out his or her task without fear or favour.

She has also criticised the government for not picking new appointees for the MACC panels, which help oversee the commission’s work. She lamented that the panels were never before left vacant.

The man from AG’s Chambers

Although AG Apandi had earlier this year denied that the Chambers’ senior officer Dzulkefli Ahmad would be picked to replace Abu Kassim, there are signs his name is among possible candidates.

Sources indicate that Dzulkefli is heavily favoured and is said to be recommended to the chief secretary to the government Ali Hamsa by those close to the prime minister.

Dzulkifli presently heads the National Revenue Recovery Enforcement team, and sources indicate that he had played a role in helping to clear Najib.

He was also a member of the secretariat in the multi-departmental and agency's investigations into 1MDB and SRC International, replacing Jessica Gurmeet Kaur, who was initially appointed by then attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail and was suddenly terminated.

Najib has denied any wrongdoing in both the 1MDB and SRC scandals.

According to sources, the shake-up in MACC will severely undermine the anti-graft commission. - M'kini

Source : www.malaysia-chronicle.com