The organisation also expressed concern that weaknesses in internal controls and monitoring systems could open the door to corruption, collusion and abuse of power involving parties within the logistics chain, enforcement agencies and the international trade sector.
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Corruption Watch (MCW) has called for an immediate and transparent investigation into allegations of discrepancies between Bill of Lading (BL) documentation and the physical movement of petroleum cargo at Tanjung Langsat Port, warning that any weaknesses in oversight could expose the country to trade fraud, smuggling and corruption risks.
In a statement, the anti-corruption watchdog’s president, Jais Abdul Karim, said it took reports and observations seriously by industry players concerning a possible mismatch between shipping documentation and the actual movement of petroleum cargo at the Johor-based port.
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“If the allegations were found to have merit and were not addressed decisively, they could create opportunities for various forms of misconduct, including trade fraud, manipulation of documentation, tax and duty evasion, petroleum product smuggling and money laundering activities,” the statement read.
Jais added that transactions involving petroleum shipments are allegedly worth millions of ringgit, meaning any discrepancy between paperwork and cargo movement could potentially result in significant losses in national revenue.
The organisation also expressed concern that weaknesses in internal controls and monitoring systems could open the door to corruption, collusion and abuse of power involving parties within the logistics chain, enforcement agencies and the international trade sector.
To strengthen governance, MCW urged the relevant authorities to enhance cross-verification mechanisms involving port records, customs data, vessel manifests, vessel tracking systems, trade documentation and terminal storage records.
It also called for the accelerated digitalisation of the petroleum supply chain to enable real-time tracking and more effective auditing of transactions.
Among the additional measures proposed were regular independent audits, greater use of data analytics, improved integration of databases across agencies and stronger protection for whistleblowers to facilitate the early detection of irregularities.
Given the scale of the transactions involved and the potential impact on Malaysia’s reputation as a regional trade and logistics hub, MCW said the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) should give immediate attention to the matter if elements of corruption, abuse of power or document falsification were present.
The group also stressed that any investigation must be independent and transparent to avoid perceptions of weak enforcement or preferential treatment, while ensuring that all parties involved are given an opportunity to present their explanations based on facts and evidence.
“The integrity of Malaysia’s trading system was a strategic national asset that must be safeguarded and allegations capable of undermining investor confidence and the credibility of enforcement institutions should be thoroughly investigated in the interest of the country,” Jais said.