PAC-flagged HRD Corp issues plugged, Sim says amid questions over CEO

Summary

• Human Resources Minister Steven Sim says issues the PAC raised regarding HRD Corp have been resolved.

• He says PAC did not recommend dismissing anyone, in response to questions about HRD Corp CEO Shahul Hameed Dawood.

• Separately, Sim says the government is open to solutions for the manpower shortage in the F&B sector but must ensure compliance with national laws and policies.

Human Resources Minister Steven Sim said that issues raised by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) regarding HRD Corp have been addressed.

Sim (above) told the media that the ministry is also awaiting the outcome of MACC investigations into the government-linked company.

He said this when asked about HRD Corp CEO Shahul Hameed Dawood returning to work despite ongoing investigations into alleged mismanagement.

DAP chairperson Lim Guan Eng had questioned whether this meant the PAC’s findings had been disregarded.

Sim, however, dismissed this assertion.

"Did the PAC report recommend that anyone be dismissed? The PAC has released its report, and we have resolved the issues raised.

"But most importantly, we have handed the matter to the authorities. We have submitted it, so now we wait for the MACC report," he said at HRD Corp's Chinese New Year open house in Puchong today.

Shahul was also present at the event.

Sim confirmed Shahul’s return to work in November last year, after having been on garden leave since July.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said, in a written reply to Bayan Baru MP and PAC member Sim Tze Tzin, stated that the MACC is still investigating issues related to HRD Corp’s management.

Last year, HRD Corp came under scrutiny after the Auditor-General’s Department recommended that the Human Resources Ministry refer the company to the relevant enforcement agencies following its failed audit report.

In response, the PAC suggested that the ministry appoint an independent consultant to conduct a forensic audit of HRD Corp’s training programmes.

Rohingya workers in F&B

On a separate matter, Sim said the government was open to hearing suggestions to overcome the labour shortage in the food and beverage industry.

This is after Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) president Jawahir Ali Taib Khan said the association had no objections to hiring Rohingya refugees to address labour shortages - provided the government permitted it.

“Anyone can give suggestions, but we need to consider its suitability,” Sim said.

The laws and policies must be considered, he added.

The government does not officially allow refugees to work, although it has looked into the matter several times.

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