Dzulkifli Ahmad's appointment as the new Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief is worrying, given his role in clearing Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak of all wrongdoing in relation to 1MDB, said Ambiga Sreenevasan.

The National Human Rights Society (Hakam) president said the appointment would likely mean that MACC will not reopen its files on Najib and his links to the troubled state investment arm.

"The appointment of Dzulkifli is of concern. He was on the AGC (Attorney-General's Chamber) team that cleared the prime minister of all charges relating to 1MDB and SRC (International) and it appears that he was picked for this reason.

"It would appear that these files will now remain tightly closed in MACC even in the light of the DOJ (United States Department of Justice) actions," Ambiga told Malaysiakini today.

The former Bar Council president was referring to the lawsuits the DOJ filed last week, to seize assets allegedly purchased with funds misappropriated from 1MDB.

She said she was also very concerned about MACC now that the top three officers had left almost simultaneously.

Dzulkifli's predecessor Abu Kassim Mohamed along with MACC deputy commissioner (operations) Mohd Shukri Abdull and MACC deputy commissioner (prevention) Mustafar Ali had strengthened the commission, she said.

They had worked well with civil society in their fight against corruption, she added.

She also questioned the rationale in not promoting Mustafar instead, whom she said was an "obvious candidate" given that he had been with the MACC for about 35 years.

She added that she believed MACC was being undermined to serve the purposes of one individual, though she did not name the individual.

Serving without fear or favour?

Meanwhile, Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) executive director Cynthia Gabriel questioned whether Dzulkifli could carry out his duties without fear or favour.

This was in light of the spate of sackings, transfers, and voluntary retirement that had followed the 1MDB scandal, she told Malaysiakini today.

She also urged Dzulkifli to uphold his predecessor Abu Kassim's good spirit and commitment towards working with stakeholders to fight graft.

She hoped C4 could continue its good working relationship with MACC under Dzulkifli's leadership.

The anti-graft group along with the Malaysian Bar Council and several other NGOs had submitted a set of reforms to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Paul Low as well as to MACC, she said.

Part of the reforms included a guarantee of the security of the MACC chief commissioner's tenure, she said, which would help make the anti-graft body more independent.

She urged Dzulkifli to look into these reforms as part of his priority.

Whiter than white

Meanwhile, Transparency International-Malaysia (TI-M) president Akhbar Satar said Dzulkifli had to prove himself as the new MACC chief commissioner.

"He (Dzulkifli) has to show good example. Leadership by example. In this organisation, he must be whiter than white," he told Malaysiakini.

Akhbar also said it is important that the new MACC chief avoid favouritism and "promote those officers who can work".

It is also important that Dzulkifli take care of his new team's well-being and that they work together, he said.

Constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari also had concerns about Dzulkifli's appointment, saying that the alleged 'jump' of the newly-appointed MACC chief has become the talk of the town.

"Given the senior ranking of the MACC chief, one has every reason to ask why the new holder was not quite a senior in his former department," he said.

Yesterday, it was announced that Dzulkifli, a senior officer with the AGC, had been appointed as the new MACC chief commissioner and will replace Abu Kassim whose retirement takes effect next Monday.

Dzulkifli, 48, will hold the post until July 2021.

Meanwhile, Abu Kassim will continue to serve as an anti-corruption service officer until his mandatory retirement in 2020. Mohd Shukri will be retiring while Mustafar has been appointed as the new Immigration Department director-general effective Aug 1.