The MACC has denied carrying out a political witch hunt against former finance minister Daim Zainuddin, as alleged by the latter.
According to the anti-graft agency, the probe against Daim is based on the provisions of law.
"The MACC would like to correct the facts regarding the statement issued by Daim, which has caused unnecessary confusion and misunderstanding over the investigation of his case.
"First of all, the MACC has never, at any point, raised or issued any official statement accusing Daim of committing any offence," MACC said in a statement today.
The agency then clarified that an investigation was initiated against Daim in February 2023 due to information obtained from the Pandora Papers.
MACC was responding to Daim recently accusing Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the graft busters of carrying out a political witch hunt against him.
In saying so, the businessperson also alleged that the MACC has not communicated to him or his family regarding why they are being investigated.
This came after MACC seized Ilham Tower, a high-commercial-value building owned by Daim and his family.
Innocent until proven guilty
MACC said that as part of the investigation against Daim, a notice under Section 36(1)(a) of the MACC Act 2009 (Act 694) was sent to Daim on June 7, 2023, requesting him to make a written and sworn statement to declare all his assets whether inside or outside the country within 30 days from the date of the notice.
"Daim applied for five extensions and he was granted the extensions on July 6, Aug 10, Sept 11, Oct 11, and the last on Nov 14, 2023, to declare his assets.
"As part of the investigation process, the Public Prosecutor had issued a Notice of Seizure on Ilham Tower on Dec 18, 2023, under Section 38(1), MACC Act 2009 (seizure of immovable property)," said MACC.
It added that the former minister is also being probed under Section 23 of the MACC Act 2009 and Section 4 (1) Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Act 2001 (AMLATFPUAA).
MACC stressed that on the legal principle of "presumption of innocence", anyone under probe for any offence is innocent until proven guilty and the individual has every opportunity to clear their name if the case is brought to the court of law.
"The MACC is an independent commission and acts objectively and professionally according to stipulated laws and regulations, in addition to being monitored by five independent oversight bodies.
"Therefore, the MACC urges all to restrain from speculating on the case and allow investigations to proceed without interference,” it said. - Mkini
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