Latest news with #MACCAct
New Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
States should draft laws to govern mosque finances, says MACC
KAJANG: The Islamic authorities in all states should draft laws governing the financial management of mosques, said the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said the commission had been receiving more complaints about the financial management and procurement processes of mosques and surau. "I strongly encourage this effort, starting with the Selangor Islamic Religious Council, but ideally, it should be extended to all state religious councils across the country. "Mosque management is crucial not only because mosques are symbols of Islam, but also because the institution itself must be strengthened. "Some mosques, particularly those in cities, manage large sums of money and require proper oversight," he said. Azam was speaking to reporters after launching Universiti Islam Selangor's Integrity Policy here today. He said religious councils must introduce clear regulations to ensure regular and consistent monitoring of mosque affairs. "This would also enable appropriate action to be taken against mosque committees or members who breach governance standards or violate rules set by their respective state religious authorities." He said that the absence of explicit state-level regulations governing mosque management has hindered the MACC's ability to act. "Because there are no clear regulations under the respective state enactments, the MACC cannot take legal action when members of mosque committees violate ambiguous or non-existent rules," he said. Azam said that while the MACC Act is a federal law applicable nationwide, it lacks specific provisions for mosque administration. "Our Act covers general misconduct across the country, but it doesn't specifically address the governance of mosque institutions. "This is unlike other sectors, such as cooperatives, which are governed by clearly defined laws. "For mosques, a more tailored legal framework is needed under each state's jurisdiction," he said. He said the financial responsibilities of some mosques were substantial, yet they operated without sufficient oversight. Earlier, in his officiating speech, Azam cited the purchase of cattle for korban (ritual sacrifice) as an example of mosque transactions that should be managed. "I once spoke to a cattle supplier who revealed that mosque committees had requested inflated prices. The actual cost was RM3,500, but they asked for it to be listed as RM4,500. He named several mosques that had engaged in such practices. "Unfortunately, cases like these are not uncommon. In our society, particularly when it involves religious affairs, people tend to avoid asking too many questions. "This culture of silence creates opportunities for individuals to enrich themselves," he said. Azam said places of worship of other faiths also needed to manage their financial transactions.
New Straits Times
22-05-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
MyKiosk under scrutiny: Documents handed to MACC voluntarily
PUTRAJAYA: The Housing and Local Government Ministry has voluntarily submitted documents on the MyKiosk initiative to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to ensure transparency and integrity in the programme's implementation. In a statement today, the ministry said the submission was made in light of complaints from certain quarters alleging possible irregularities in the execution of the project. Led by Local Government Department director-general Datuk Mohd Fadzli Mohd Kenali, a ministry delegation delivered the documents to MACC headquarters earlier today — despite there being no official request from the anti-graft agency. "This voluntary submission reflects the ministry's firm commitment to upholding good governance and administrative integrity. We want to ensure that the MyKiosk initiative is implemented without any element of abuse of power or misappropriation," the statement read. The ministry stressed that MyKiosk was introduced to support small traders, and that it remains fully committed to ensuring that all government initiatives are executed with integrity and transparency. "Through this submission, we hope to instil public confidence that every process involved in the initiative complies with the proper procedures and standards," it added. The ministry said this measure would send a clear message that the government was serious about instilling integrity across all facets of public administration and service delivery. It also said that comprehensive information about the MyKiosk programme has been disseminated through official social media platforms for public reference. All procurement and contractor appointments for the MyKiosk initiative were managed by 133 local authorities (PBT) through open quotation exercises. A total of 795 contractors were appointed nationwide through this process. The ceiling cost for MyKiosk 2.0 was capped at RM25,000 per unit — a figure the ministry described as reasonable, and which enabled fair competition under a transparent, open quotation system at the local authority level. All related allocations were accounted for under national Budget Initiatives and submitted to the Finance Ministry in accordance with established procedures. The ministry also reminded the public that under Section 27(1) of the MACC Act, it was a criminal offence to knowingly provide false or misleading information to MACC officers. Upon conviction, offenders may face a fine of up to RM100,000, a prison sentence of up to 10 years, or both.
The Star
21-05-2025
- The Star
MACC nabs duo for using fake documents to claim RM180,000 dividends
SEREMBAN: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has arrested and obtained four-day remand orders for two former statutory body officers for allegedly using fake documents to claim dividends of RM180,000. The remand order for the suspects, a man and a woman in their 30s and 40s, is for four days until May 25. A source said one suspect was detained in Perak and the other in Terengganu. "They are believed to have committed the offence between 2021 and 2023, involving claims of about RM180,000. "The cash was banked into accounts of their spouses, who were not eligible to receive the dividends," he said. Negri Sembilan MACC chief Awgkok Ahmad Taufik Putra Awg Ismail confirmed the case and said it is being probed under Section 18 of the MACC Act.
Borneo Post
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Borneo Post
Pamela Ling still missing but court to hear today her bid to challenge MACC's actions
Singaporean Pamela Ling disappeared on April 9, 2025 while on her way to the MACC office to assist in investigations related to a money laundering case. – File photo KUALA LUMPUR (May 19): Sarawak-born Datin Seri Pamela Ling Yueh has been missing for more than a month now, but her lawyers will still go on today with her court bid to challenge her previous arrest and travel ban by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC). Just two days before her disappearance, Ling on April 7 filed her court challenge at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur against the MACC and the Immigration director-general. In a nutshell, Ling wants the court to cancel the arrest warrant used by MACC in her January 8 arrest; to be allowed to leave Malaysia to care for her three children in Singapore; and is claiming for at least around RM137,000 as compensation. Here are the five specific court orders that Ling is seeking in her court case: 1. To quash the December 2, 2024 arrest warrant — issued by the Johor Bahru Magistrates Court — against her. 2. A declaration that MACC does not have powers to directly or indirectly prohibit a person from leaving Malaysia (except in the way stated in the MACC Act's Section 44 and the anti-money laundering law's Section 44(4) ) 3. To order MACC to return her mobile phone to her; 4. An order to compel the Immigration director-general to allow her to leave Malaysia; 5. An order for compensation – For expenses spent up to the day of filing of court challenge: Two sums of S$20,401.14 (equivalent to around RM67,000) and RM70,000, or any part of these amounts;- For expenses for the period between lawsuit filing up to decision date, and general, exemplary or punitive damages: To ask the court to decide the amount payable. As Ling's lawsuit was filed as a judicial review application, she will first have to get the court's leave or permission for her actual lawsuit to be heard. High Court judge Datuk Amarjeet Singh Serjit Singh is scheduled to hear her application for leave for judicial review this morning. The Attorney General's Chambers is expected to object to only Ling's bid to have the arrest warrant quashed through this lawsuit. Pamela Ling is seeking general damages for MACC's alleged unlawful arrest and detention of her during January 8 to January 11, and alleged emotional and psychological distress due to those actions and being allegedly unlawfully separated from her children who she said needs her care. – Malay Mail photo What Ling is asserting in her court challenge Ling and Sarawakian businessman Datuk Seri Thomas Hah Tiing Siu, who will both turn 42 and 56 this year, had been married for more than 20 years. Ling was living in Singapore with their three children, while Hah is based in Malaysia. The eldest child aged 20 and diagnosed with autism undergoes treatment in Singapore for a rare medical life-threatening condition known as hereditary angioedema, while another child aged 18 diagnosed with dyslexia also undergoes treatment there. Ling had in August 2023 filed for divorce in Singapore while Hah had in December 2023 filed for divorce in Malaysia. Based on court papers, Ling detailed multiple events, including MACC's obtaining of an arrest warrant on December 2, 2024, over her failure to comply with the agency's October 29, 2024 order to appear at its Johor Bahru office the next day for investigations into a case. The investigations were for a case involving her father's business, which he said in court documents had been resolved after his late November 2024 payment of a compound sum offered by MACC. In lengthy court documents, Ling asserts that the MACC's October 2024 order was not served according to the law, and that she had not wished to accept the order and had taken it under protest from an MACC officer without acknowledging service. According to Ling, Singapore authorities on January 8 carried out the arrest warrant by taking her into custody in Singapore, before passing her to MACC officers at the Malaysia-Singapore immigration checkpoint the same day. On January 8, Ling said she was in handcuffs when taken to MACC's Johor Bahru offices and confined, and remained in handcuffs when she was brought to MACC's Putrajaya headquarters and was kept in the MACC lock-up overnight. Ling said she was then remanded or further detained for three days from January 9 to January 11 to assist in the MACC's investigations, and that MACC seized her phone and recorded her statement. She was released from remand on January 11, with the MACC requiring her to pay RM35,000 as deposit and to report every month to MACC until investigation ends. Apart from reporting to MACC every month, Ling said she had presented herself to the MACC to have her statement recorded on January 13, 15, 17, 22, 24, 27 and February 12. Ling claims that she had shown up at MACC's office on January 24 and was waiting to have her statement taken, when her husband allegedly approached her and claimed to have been told by MACC officers that the two should settle matters between them. Ling said she later found out that MACC had successfully obtained a travel ban on her since October 2024, but asserts that MACC had acted unlawfully in getting Malaysia's immigration authorities to stop her from leaving the country. Ling asserts that immigration authorities had acted wrongfully and unlawfully by complying with MACC's alleged unlawful direction for the travel ban on her. Ling said her criminal lawyers' January 24 letter to request that she be allowed to return to her children in Singapore received no response, while her same lawyers' February 14 letter with a similar request upon her eldest child's hospitalisation was refused by MACC. She said there was no response to her civil lawyers' March 24 letter to MACC to request a lifting of the travel ban. Among other things, Ling in her court documents expressed her belief that the actual purpose of her arrest, remand and travel ban was to pressure her to resolve with her husband on her claims, including on assets in their marriage and on his alleged forgery of her signature on a disputed July 2023 share transfer document. Claiming that MACC had allegedly abused its powers and acted beyond the powers it had under the laws, Ling asserted that MACC had no legal basis to apply for the arrest warrant and the remand order or to impose conditions on her January 11 release from remand. The expenses she is seeking to claim in her court challenge include her hotel stays since there is a travel restriction on her, and the RM70,000 she has so far paid to criminal lawyers for matters such as opposing the remand application and to deal with the MACC. She is also seeking general damages for MACC's alleged unlawful arrest and detention of her during January 8 to January 11, and alleged emotional and psychological distress due to those actions and being allegedly unlawfully separated from her children who she said needs her care. She claims to have been denied her constitutional rights to liberty and equal protection of the law under the Federal Constitution's Article 5(1) and Article 8(1) respectively. April 9 disappearance en route to MACC Ling disappeared on April 9 after her e-hailing ride to MACC was intercepted by unknown individuals in several vehicles, and remains missing with no ransom demands made. The police are currently investigating her disappearance as a missing persons case, and have so far recorded the statements of 27 individuals. Court MACC Pamela Ling Yueh
The Star
16-05-2025
- The Star
Police detain Pamela's husband
Datuk Seri held for questioning in connection with his wife's disappearance KUALA LUMPUR: The husband of missing Datin Seri Pamela Ling Yueh has been detained to assist the investigation into her disappearance, says Kuala Lumpur police chief Comm Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa. He added that the husband, a Datuk Seri, was detained early yesterday in the city. 'He was brought to the Putrajaya Court for an application for remand. However, the application was rejected,' Comm Rusdi said when contacted, without elaborating further. The suspect was detained to assist in an ongoing investigation, he added. When asked whether more suspects will be detained, Comm Rusdi said the matter is under investigation. It was reported on April 9 that Pamela was summoned to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters in Putrajaya to assist with an investigation under the MACC Act and the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing, and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act. However, she reportedly went missing while on her way to the appointment. Her lawyer filed a police report regarding her disappearance on the same day. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain previously said Pamela's husband was among those who could be a suspect in her disappearance. So far, no ransom demand had been made regarding her disappearance. Meanwhile, lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo, who is representing Pamela's family, said the MACC and its chief commissioner should respond to the commission's conduct leading up to Pamela's disappearance. She said it has been 36 days since Pamela was taken on April 9, when she was on her way to the MACC for yet another round of questioning. 'For months, Pamela was subjected to relentless scrutiny by the MACC. She was questioned repeatedly and she was prevented from returning to her children in Singapore. 'Her presence in Malaysia was not by choice, but by MACC's orders. With her movements restricted and no option to leave the country, she was placed entirely under the authority and control of the MACC. 'Thus, the commission has a duty to explain about events and circumstances leading up to her disappearance,' Sangeet said. The police have recorded the statements of 27 individuals and in the midst of recording the statements of Pamela's three children in Singapore, with the assistance of Interpol.
