COMMENT I wish to congratulate the new deputy chief commissioner, Azam Baki, and his team for their efforts to go after senior government officials.

It has put the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in a good light. It goes to show that the MACC has finally shown its fangs.

The former director of investigations is, in fact, risking his life because of the nature of his job, but someone has to do it.

This is because corruption in this country has become too rampant that the amounts received in bribes are now in the millions, if not billions of ringgit. In fact, we have heard about bribes in the millions since the early 80s.

What we are seeing from the latest haul of RM53 million from a director and his deputy from a Sabah-based utility company is just a tip of the iceberg. This is just the beginning.

What about 1MDB and SRC cases?

What I need to ask is why, in the case of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and SRC International, nothing is being done to arrest the people who were involved in the disappearance of billions of ringgit?

According to a Malaysiakini report, investigations by the Swiss Attorney-General’s Office (OAG) have revealed that “substantial amounts of money were allegedly misappropriated from former 1MDB subsidiary SRC International and that fraud was committed based on a form of ‘Ponzi’ scheme to cover it up.”

DAP parliamentarian Tony Pua has raised the question to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, and we hope to hear his explanation about the disappearance of some RM4 billion that SRC International is said to have borrowed from the Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP) which the OAG’s investigation revealed that the money had been “invested in mysterious and unknown funds overseas.”

Najib will have to answer this question, failing which we as ordinary citizens will believe that it is indeed another case of kleptocracy. In the past, Najib has also failed to explain convincingly the amount of RM40 million that went into his personal account.

So, what is really RM53 million by comparison? If RM4 billion had indeed gone missing, this would be about 80 times the amount that was hauled in by the MACC.

More questions

In fact, I am wondering whether the MACC is being used as a political pawn without them realising it.

Of course, I am happy that they are finally making headway with the numerous cases that are now being told to the public, and I continue to pray for Azam and his team’s safety as they carry out their job. Bravo to Azam’s team!

However, with the current circumstances, it is hard not to ask questions like:

- Why no investigation into cases which both the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Swiss OAG have revealed regarding Malaysian Official 1 (MO1)? Thanks to Umno strategic communications director, Rahman Dahlan, we now know it is Najib. We no longer have to make any guesses.

If the DOJ calls it kleptocracy, certainly we cannot just dismiss it and say that the US is under the influence of Israel, can we? Now, the Swiss OAG has uncovered a new dimension, which we are waiting for it to reveal.

- Are the recent MACC cases politically linked? Are these the funders linked to Umno rebels who left the party? We do not expect to get a question unless someone is willing to bare it all.

The circumstances surrounding these cases prompt us to raise these questions and they are legitimate because we have seen how in the case of Lim Guan Eng’s purchase of a bungalow, even a discounted price can be used as an excuse for charging him with corruption to the point that we are now joking that we cannot sell anything at a discount; otherwise, like Guan Eng, we may be charged with corruption.

- Or, is one of the reasons why the MACC has been given the mandate to charge some of these corrupt because the country’s coffers are fast running out, and this is quick money to replenish the dry coffers since the amount can run into the millions?

I have yet another question to ask the Finance Minister II, Johari Abdul Ghani, what happened to the demand for US$6.5 billion, filed by Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and its subsidiary Aabar Investments with the London Court of International Arbitration.

Show us how 1MDB has the means to pay the amount owing to IPIC and Aabar Investments, when it does not have any profitable business venture.

Until and unless the government is serious about 1MDB and SRC International, people like Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Paul Low should not be too quick to claim credit for the cases that the MACC has successfully seized millions of ringgit.

STEPHEN NG is an ordinary citizen with an avid interest in following political developments in the country since 2008.