KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 – PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub today rubbished the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) excuse for refusing to investigate MAS’ RM8 billion losses as the police had already investigated the case.
The Kubang Kerian MP said he was not satisfied with the agency’s explanation and promised to continue pursuing the matter.
“They explained to me in the meeting why MACC did not take up the case. I was informed that the reason was that the case had already been investigated by the Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID),” he told reporters after a meeting with MACC officials in Parliament this afternoon.
“I am not convinced with their explanation and I will proceed my agenda to reveal all the documents and bring this matter up during the next Parliament session. I will make it my priority,” Salahuddin said.
He added that the public had already seen too much of their money squandered away due to the corrupt practices of officials in government-linked companies and would want to see this issue publicised.
“I feel there is a need for a more aggressive and drastic action. I am convinced that once this issue is properly exposed, we can bring the criminal to book.
“Like in the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal, we fought for almost four years and finally, a big fish was brought to court,” he added.
Salahuddin said he was baffled over why the alleged persons involved in causing MAS’ heavy losses had not been brought to justice throughout the years despite recommendations made by the police.
He also accused the country’s past two Prime Ministers, the police and the Attorney-General of conspiring to protect the perpetrators who caused the losses, and challenged the current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to act on the matter.
“This involves three Prime Ministers – two Tuns and one Datuk Seri. Are they not capable of bringing these people to face justice?
“Now Najib is the Prime Minister, if he means what he says when he speaks of integrity, then it is time that those involved are punished,” he said.
MAS had first lodged a police report against its former executive chairman Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli in 2002 for allegedly causing the national carrier to suffer losses in excess of RM8 billion.
Tajuddin was the executive chairman from 1994 to 2001.
According to a report to the MACC, one of the single biggest loss under Tajuddin was caused by the relocation of MAS’s cargo operatio in Amsterdam and Frankfurt to a single hub in Hahn, Germany, where the airline was forced to enter into a disadvantageous aircraft lease contract with a company, which was later found out to be under the control of Tajuddin’s family.
The new cargo hub operation had caused MAS to suffer losses of between RM10 million and RM16 million a month before the project was terminated after the government regained control of MAS in 2001.
The termination resulted in a RM300 million arbitration claim against MAS by the company said to be linked to Tajuddin.
The report to the MACC dated May last year also alleged that the Attorney-General has been reluctant to prosecute Tajuddin, despite the then-CCID chief Datuk Ramli Yusoff’s assurance in 2007 that it had identified various prosecutable offences.
It also claimed that Tajuddin had been given access to the investigation and police records, which were used to facilitate the arbitration claim.
Salahuddin also claimed that Ramli had even met privately with former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi with his recommendations but the latter had chosen to ignore them.
“But no one cared and MAS has shown its disappointment,” he said.
He added that if all parties failed to pursue the matter, he would call for the formation of a Royal Commission to probe the matter.
“At least the people will know the culprits involved,” he said.
MACC could not be reached for comment.
Malaysian Insider
19/08/10
The Kubang Kerian MP said he was not satisfied with the agency’s explanation and promised to continue pursuing the matter.
“They explained to me in the meeting why MACC did not take up the case. I was informed that the reason was that the case had already been investigated by the Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID),” he told reporters after a meeting with MACC officials in Parliament this afternoon.
“I am not convinced with their explanation and I will proceed my agenda to reveal all the documents and bring this matter up during the next Parliament session. I will make it my priority,” Salahuddin said.
He added that the public had already seen too much of their money squandered away due to the corrupt practices of officials in government-linked companies and would want to see this issue publicised.
“I feel there is a need for a more aggressive and drastic action. I am convinced that once this issue is properly exposed, we can bring the criminal to book.
“Like in the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal, we fought for almost four years and finally, a big fish was brought to court,” he added.
Salahuddin said he was baffled over why the alleged persons involved in causing MAS’ heavy losses had not been brought to justice throughout the years despite recommendations made by the police.
He also accused the country’s past two Prime Ministers, the police and the Attorney-General of conspiring to protect the perpetrators who caused the losses, and challenged the current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to act on the matter.
“This involves three Prime Ministers – two Tuns and one Datuk Seri. Are they not capable of bringing these people to face justice?
“Now Najib is the Prime Minister, if he means what he says when he speaks of integrity, then it is time that those involved are punished,” he said.
MAS had first lodged a police report against its former executive chairman Tan Sri Tajuddin Ramli in 2002 for allegedly causing the national carrier to suffer losses in excess of RM8 billion.
Tajuddin was the executive chairman from 1994 to 2001.
According to a report to the MACC, one of the single biggest loss under Tajuddin was caused by the relocation of MAS’s cargo operatio in Amsterdam and Frankfurt to a single hub in Hahn, Germany, where the airline was forced to enter into a disadvantageous aircraft lease contract with a company, which was later found out to be under the control of Tajuddin’s family.
The new cargo hub operation had caused MAS to suffer losses of between RM10 million and RM16 million a month before the project was terminated after the government regained control of MAS in 2001.
The termination resulted in a RM300 million arbitration claim against MAS by the company said to be linked to Tajuddin.
The report to the MACC dated May last year also alleged that the Attorney-General has been reluctant to prosecute Tajuddin, despite the then-CCID chief Datuk Ramli Yusoff’s assurance in 2007 that it had identified various prosecutable offences.
It also claimed that Tajuddin had been given access to the investigation and police records, which were used to facilitate the arbitration claim.
Salahuddin also claimed that Ramli had even met privately with former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi with his recommendations but the latter had chosen to ignore them.
“But no one cared and MAS has shown its disappointment,” he said.
He added that if all parties failed to pursue the matter, he would call for the formation of a Royal Commission to probe the matter.
“At least the people will know the culprits involved,” he said.
MACC could not be reached for comment.
Malaysian Insider
19/08/10
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