KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 9 - Former Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim and two former senior officials of the institution were remanded for two days from today to assist investigations into an alleged cheating case involving TH hibah payments.
Lawyer Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad said the remand order against Azeez, who is former TH group chief executive officer and former group chief financial officer, was issued by Senior Assistant Registrar Mohamad Afiq Zuber.
Afiq acted as a magistrate following an application by police at the Sessions Court here.
“The three individuals are being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code in connection with the payment of Tabung Haji hibah,” he told reporters after the remand proceedings.
Amer Hamzah said the defence had informed the court that there was no need for a further remand as the investigation into the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report had been completed and the findings submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers.
“He (Azeez) went to Bukit Aman yesterday as soon as he was informed by police and was aware that he had to appear in court today to face new charges brought by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
“Nevertheless, he has fully cooperated and is not a flight risk. He has provided investigating officers with all the information required in detail,” he said.
After the remand proceedings, Azeez was subsequently charged at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court with allegedly using his position to secure the chairmanship of a company and influencing TH board members to approve a proposed RM193.5 million investment in the company 12 years ago.
On August 27, the former TH chairman and a former Treasury secretary-general were each remanded for seven days until September 2 to assist investigations following the July 29 disclosure of the RCI report on the institution.
Both individuals were investigated under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act 2009.
The RCI report on TH, among other things, recommended a forensic audit to scrutinise how past investment decisions were made, which resulted in TH suffering a severe decline in asset value.
The report, which investigated TH’s management and operations from 2014 to 2020, also identified troubled investments requiring forensic audits. It also found suspicious transactions and concealment of information.
The RCI’s scope of inquiry covered issues involving TH during the period, with reference to findings by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Ernst & Young (EY) and Roland Berger, but excluded the restructuring and recovery plans being implemented at the time.
