KUALA LUMPUR (April 19): Wong Weng Yew, the suspended executive director of GIIB Holdings Bhd, claims the company's management took actions against him after he raised questions about several transactions that he found to be suspicious in nature.
In a media statement issued on Tuesday (April 19), Wong said he had been treated with hostility and contempt by the company's management ever since he brought the transactional issues to light, and claimed that this treatment "can only be to silence my questions with regard to the suspicious transactions and to defame me in the eyes of the public", and that he reserves all his rights in the matter.
According to GIIB's annual report, Wong, 38, was appointed as the company's executive director on Feb 23, 2021, and that he was responsible for managing its finance and accounting operations.
"In a further affront to good governance, executive chairman Tai Boon Wee directly requested for me to approve certain payments, although I was still suspended from duty. These irregular actions by the executive chairman should be a matter investigated by an internal audit committee and the relevant regulatory bodies," Wong claimed.
"My fiduciary duty as an executive director and authorised signatory remains to the shareholders," he added.
He further said he had on April 7 responded to a show-cause letter from the company with his full explanation as well as the supporting evidence to deny all allegations against him.
GIIB (formerly known as Goodway Integrated Industries Bhd) on April 11 announced that it had suspended Wong from his roles in the company and its subsidiaries since March 28, and that the suspension had been extended until April 25, pending the evaluation of Wong's reply to the show-cause letter. At the time, no reason was stated for the suspension or the show-cause letter.
A day later, GIIB explained that the suspension was to facilitate the investigation into Wong's management and handling of the glove business and the company's accounts, and that its board of directors had resolved to engage "an independent audit firm and any other experts if required" to undertake the investigation.
On Monday, GIIB said it had just set up an investigative committee to oversee the investigation into the allegations against Wong, and as such the newly set-up committee needs more time to seek proposals from the independent audit firm to investigate the matter. It also said further announcements would be made on the matter upon the engagement of the independent audit firm.
The committee comprises its independent non-executive directors Yong Wei Sang and Tee Jun Shern, as well as Tai Qiyao, the alternate director to Tai, the company's executive chairman cum chief executive officer.
GIIB shares settled down 5.26% or half a sen at nine sen on Monday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM50.56 million.