Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 4): Following the suspension into the hearings of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) proceedings for three months starting today, Public Accounts Committee (PAC) deputy chairman Dr Tan Seng Giaw said that under public pressure, the PAC may have to come out with a brief report of how far it has proceeded with the 1MDB inquiry.

The PAC will have to convene a meeting to get a consensus among members on the matter before a decision can be made to proceed with drafting an interim report, he added.

Once agreed upon and after considering all the laws, then only can the PAC interim report on 1MDB be tabled to Parliament before it is made public.

"We will have to sit down and discuss to see what we can and what we can't disclose.

"It is against the law to expose the interim report (of 1MDB by the Auditor-General), let us be fair because it may jeopardise the outcome of the final report.

"We have to look at all the legal aspects, because certain facts we cannot disclose — otherwise we can be charged for sedition or the Penal Code that could send us to jail," Tan told reporters today.

However, he noted that the details on the PAC interim report on 1MDB will only be confined to the details given by the Auditor-General in its interim report.

The PAC was scheduled to hear the testimonies of 1MDB's former chief executive officer (CEO) Sharol Ibrahim Halimi this morning. While 1MDB president and group executive director Arul Kanda Kandasamy and former CEO Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman have both been scheduled to appear tomorrow (Wednesday, Aug 5) and on Thursday (Aug 6), respectively.

Members of the PAC were also barred from entering their office today, and were forced to hold the press conference outside its office within Parliament grounds.

Tan also said that in some countries such as UK and US, an inquiry as important as 1MDB is open to the public and broadcast nationwide.

"The world is aware. Hitherto, Malaysia does not have such a practice.

"Yang Amat Berhormat Datuk Seri Najib Razak says that the Government has a programme to reduce the 1MDB debts within six months. It waits for the Auditor-General's final report on 1MDB," he added.

As the government has such a programme, it is only appropriate for the PAC to continue with its inquiry on 1MDB without interruptions, he noted.

All concerned should assist, he said.

He explained that this is because the social media have various versions of 1MDB's story and that the public yearn for the truth.

Hence the PAC is here today, telling them that the committee is ready to continue with their work despite constraints.

"We may have to let the people know how far we have gone with the inquiry," he said.

The PAC may reveal in its interim report details as to how much debt 1MDB has accumulated, or if 1MDB has the capacity to pay back their debts, revealed the PAC today.

The PAC also raised concerns if there will ever be a final report by the Auditor-General judging from recent turns of events.

 

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