PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob must break his silence and address the concerns raised about MACC chief Tan Sri Azam Baki, Gobind Singh Deo said today.
The Puchong MP said Ismail must set an example and show that integrity and accountability are key aspects within MACC.
“Section 2 of the MACC Act 2009 states clearly that the principal objects of the Act are to promote the integrity and accountability of public and private sector administration by constituting an independent and accountable anti-corruption body which is the Commission. Section 5 thereafter provides for the appointment of the Chief Commissioner, who shall be responsible for the direction, control, and supervision of all matters relating to the commission.
“The Prime Minister cannot be quiet over a matter as significant as this. MACC comes under the eye of the Prime Ministers’ department, and he must take full responsibility for it. Silence reflects weakness on his part in dealing with the problem,“ he said in a statement today.
Recently, academician Dr Edmund Terence Gomez tendered his resignation as a member of the Consultation and Corruption Prevention Panel (CCPP) of the MACC.
In his resignation letter to MACC panel chairman Tan Sri Borhan Dolah, Gomez said his resignation was in protest to Borhan’s inaction as a panel chairman.
Gomez, in the letter said he had raised two issues in regards to the allegation against Azam Baki.
Azam was reported to have links to several companies, which sparked a conflict of interest situation regarding his position as a MACC chief commissioner, as reported by Independent News Service based on Edisi Siasat’s blog.
Previously, Sungai Buloh MP R Sivarasa also raised in Parliament the allegation that Azam owns close to two million shares in public-listed companies, according to Malaysiakini.