A flurry of police reports have been made over the allegations of irregularities on the purchase of lands involving national oil company Petronas.

Last Thursday Petronas, represented by one of its staff, made a police report against malaysiakini over an article which appeared in the online news daily on Aug 26, 2005.

The Bahasa Malaysia article, Petronas menyeleweng harga tanah, dakwa bekas eksekutif reported allegations of misappropriation and forgery within the corporation's Network Development Retail Committee (NDRC).

NDRC serves as the land-valuing committee that makes recommendations on the purchase of land for the construction of Petronas stations nationwide.

In the article, ex-Petronas executive Abdul Jabbar Mohamad had claimed that individuals within NDRC had hiked up land prices than originally determined in project papers submitted to the committee.

Abdul Jabbar, who had worked with the oil company for over 20 years, was among those who prepared the project papers for evaluation by the committee.

The whistle-blower was the resident executive for Petronas Dagangan - a trading division in the oil company - and was responsible for surveying potential land plots in the country's northern region to build petrol stations until his controversial dismissal in 2001.

He said he was confounded that his recommendations were ignored and that the company proceeded to buy the land at a much higher price.

Jabbar alleged that a number of individuals had worked together to hike the land prices, some up to more than RM1 million.

Counter report

In a new twist, Abdul Jabbar ( photo ) today filed a police report against Petronas.

The report was filed at the Dang Wangi police station in Kuala Lumpur, the same station where Petronas had lodged its report against malaysiakini on Sept 1.

Earlier, Abdul Jabbar had made six police reports over the past four years against Petronas in various police stations in Penang, Perak and Kedah where allegations of questionable purchase of land plots took place.

According to investigating officer ASP Sydney Clyde Jeremiah, the malaysiakini news report on Petronas is being investigated under Section 500 of the Penal Code for criminal defamation.

Those found guilty under this section are liable to a fine or two years imprisonment, or both.

Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan was called to Dang Wangi today for two hours of questioning by the police. The police will be questioning two other malaysiakini editors tomorrow.

As for Abdul Jabbar's police report against Petronas, malaysiakini has been informed that the case is being probed by Dang Wangi's commercial crime department.

When met at the police station this morning, Abdul Jabbar said he filed the report - his seventh since 2001 - to rebut any false allegations that may have been made against him by Petronas in its report to the police more than a week ago.

His four-page report included allegations of specific aberrations in the company's procedures, discrepancies in the company's minutes and the falsification of documents, which Jabbar claimed were efforts to cover up the wrongdoings of individuals in Petronas.

He had collated a set of documents about three-inch thick to back his claims, copies of which have been made available to malaysiakini.

In his report, Jabbar also called for the police to investigate a number of land purchases by Petronas in the northern part of the country - the area where he was in charge when employed by the company.

His report was punctuated by the claim that he had received death threats in messages left at his former office before he was dismissed by the company four years ago.

Little action taken

According to Jabbar, neither the police nor the Attorney-General's Chambers seem to have shown any serious attempt to investigate his earlier police reports despite his willingness to show documentary proof.

"Initially, the AG's Chambers, in a letter dated March 21 this year, said they had not found any crime to have been committed," said Abdul Jabbar.

He added that the dismissal of his complaint was made without so much of him being called by the police to provide more details on his reports.

Dissatisfied with the response, he decided to send a full statement on his own accord to the AG's Chambers.

"Then, in a letter dated May 26 this year, they told me that 'investigations are still on-going.

"If the police this time say there is still no element of crime in the reports that I have made, I will file a civil suit against the Royal Malaysian Police. Otherwise, it is my integrity that is in question," he added.

Legal letter

Days after the Aug 26 article was published, malaysiakini also received a letter from Petronas lawyers demanding the report be removed from the website and for the website to cease any further publication of the allegations.

The national oil company also demanded an apology as well as "a suitable sum of damages" for the injury to "their reputation and good will."

Malaysiakini has through its lawyers told Petronas that it could not agree to the demands made by the company.

However, the news website said it was prepared to publish Petronas' right of reply to the issues raised by its report.

This was despite the fact that the company had earlier refused to comment on the matter.