There are still lingering questions despite the Securities Commission (SC) concluding its investigations on MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki, according to the lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdulla.
In a video posted on his Facebook account yesterday, Haniff said Azam should take garden leave while more investigations are conducted to address these issues.
He pointed out that under a government circular issued in 2002 regarding asset declarations, civil servants are required to declare their share ownerships and a limit has been imposed on the amount that can be invested in shares.
It has yet to be established whether allowing his younger brother Nasir Baki to open securities accounts under his name is a violation of this rule.
“The question is, when will this investigation be conducted?
“The Special Committee on Corruption chairperson Rais Yatim has said the same thing and the matter should be investigated by authorities - whether the Civil Service Commission or its director - to see whether there is a violation of internal regulations that can lead to disciplinary action,” Haniff said.
The other matter is whether there is an element of corruption in Nasir’s dealings conducted in Azam’s name.
“The authorities should - rather than to drag their feet on the matter for more than a month - set up a special investigation committee as I and many others have recommended before.
“It is the responsibility of the attorney-general to take initiative to resolve these two investigations, even if we are to accept that the SC’s statement supposedly concludes its investigations and no violations under the Securities Industry (Central Depositories) Act 1991 (SICDA) has been found,” he said.
Haniff added that Azam himself should recommend further investigations to take place as soon as possible, and he should take leave once the investigative committees begin work.
Yesterday, the SC said it was unable to conclusively establish whether there was a violation of Section 25(4) of SICDA when Nasir supposedly opened trading accounts under Azam’s name.
Public records show that Azam was a significant holder of warrants in the public-listed company Excel Force MSC Sdn Bhd as of March 2016, when he was head of the MACC Investigations Department.
A public outcry occurred in December last year after prominent academician Edmund Terence Gomez resigned from the MACC's Consultation and Corruption Prevention Panel, ostensibly because the panel refused to look into the matter.
Following this, Azam claimed the transaction took place because his trading account was used by his brother, Nasir. This explanation had triggered the investigation by the SC. - Mkini
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