PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission denied claims that it had received order to turn a blind eye on evidence and threaten witnesses in the case involving a senior Tabung Haji official.
The graft busters said it had acted professionally and followed the rule of laws while conducting the investigation without being influenced by any quarters.
Any arrests made, the commission added, were done to assist in its investigations based on solid basis.
“The MACC always complies with the standard operating procedures, the law and regulation while conducting our investigation in a transparent, free and professional manner without taking side to anyone or any organisations.
“This is done to clean this country from the crime of corruption, embezzlement and abuse of power,” the graft buster said in a statement.
It described that the issuance of any statement on an on-going case could jeopardise the said case, which could be viewed as an attempt to force the MACC in revealing its findings to the public.
The commission said it would not reveal the findings and would only submit the complete investigation paper to the Attorney-General’s Chambers for it to make a professional decision regarding the case.
The MACC was referring to the case of a senior TH official with the title ‘Datuk’ who had been remanded for four days to assist in the probe over a graft allegation involving a house renovation worth RM400,000.
Following news of his arrest, the Datuk’s lawyer Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz claimed ‘hidden hands’ were at play in the case to implicate his client.
He also claimed that witnesses were ‘threatened’ to compel them to issue false statements.
In a statement, Mohd Khairul Azam claimed that in the course of the investigation, his client had surrendered all evidence of communications between the latter and the contractor, which stated that he was personally bearing the cost of the kitchen renovation.
The lawyer was also reported to have issued a warning against those allegedly orchestrating the move.