Azam Baki: Recovering KWAP's eFishery losses possible but challenging

 

Retirement Fund (Incorporated) (KWAP) could pursue civil action against Indonesian aquaculture start-up eFishery to recover RM163 million in investment losses, Azam Baki said.

However, the National Financial Crime Centre (NFCC) advisory board member cautioned that it will likely be a difficult task.

"I am commenting based solely on facts reported in the media, and I believe there is a mechanism to recover the funds.

"We need to examine how the agreement was drafted and its specific terms. From there, we can determine the process for recovering the money.

"It also depends on the procedures that must be followed, one of which is filing a civil suit. Since the investment involves a foreign entity, it would be difficult to compel an overseas party to return the funds through other means," he was quoted as saying by Berita Harian.

According to the former MACC chief commissioner, legal avenues available to the statutory body include civil litigation, which could be initiated after reviewing the agreement signed by the involved parties.

He added that the terms of the agreement must be scrutinised to determine how difficult it would be to recover the losses.

What about MLA?

When queried whether Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) could be invoked, Azam said the mechanism would only come into play if investigators established criminal elements in the investment.

He explained that MLA facilitates cross-border cooperation in criminal investigations, such as obtaining evidence and witness statements, but is separate from efforts to recover the money.

"The MACC's criminal investigation is separate from the recovery process. To recover the money, civil action must be taken," he added.

On July 16, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told the Dewan Rakyat that KWAP incurred losses from its investment, which stemmed from a “planned fraud” involving alleged manipulation of financial statements by the company’s management.

In a written reply to Subang MP Wong Chen, Anwar said the investment had undergone KWAP’s governance process, including internal assessments, independent due diligence, and reviews of the company’s financial, legal, and operational standing before approval.

PM Anwar Ibrahim

KWAP and other investors have since initiated legal action and are pursuing efforts to recover the funds while strengthening internal governance.

Later on July 20, Anwar confirmed in the Dewan Negara that the MACC is probing the matter to determine whether there were elements of corruption or abuse of power.

While preliminary findings did not indicate wrongdoing by KWAP, Anwar, who is also finance minister, said he had instructed the management to cooperate with any probe. - Mkini