The Selangor Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) today resolved to hold a public hearing over allegations that a state-owned company which deals in sand mining was involved in graft.

The hearing on allegations against Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB) will be held on June 2 to 4 between 10am to 1pm at the Annex building of the Selangor state secretariat building.

"Selcat will investigate the matter from the administration aspect to determine if there were weaknesses in administration which must be addressed and improved by the state government to ensure that KSSB adheres to the policies and instructions of the state," said Darren Ong, the private secretary to Selcat chairperson Teng Chang Khim.

"Selcat hopes that all parties would grant their full cooperation during the public hearing and present relevant documents to expedite investigations," he added.

Allegations against KSSB were made public by Kapar MP S Manikavasagam who challenged Menteri Besar and PKR colleague Khalid Ibrahim to take action against errant company officials.

Following this, Khalid advised Manikavasagam to lodge a police report. When the latter did do so, he named three top KSSB officials for alleged corruption and claimed that the company had misappropriated an amount of RM10 million.

The matter has since been referred to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

KSSB has denied the allegations and demanded for Manikavasagam to retract the statement but he has refused.

‘I'm steadfast behind PKR'

In a related development, Manikavasagam today hit out at detractors who he claimed was trying to pit him against the party leadership and the state government.

"My advice to them is to stop wasting time by calling me on the telephone or trying to meet me about this issue," he said in a statement.

He also stressed that he was steadfastly behind the PKR leadership and will be loyal to the party.

"My position reflects that of the party, is to eradicate corruption in all forms," he said.

He added that he has discussed the KSSB issue with de facto party leader Anwar Ibrahim, who has expressed desire to see the allegations properly investigated.