Bribery probe began late last year, says MACC

PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) started investigating Yusof Holmes Abdullah some time late last year. 

MACC investigation director Datuk Mustafar Ali said a team was set up after they received a report on an alleged bribe involving a chartered arbitrator. “We roped in our forensic experts in accounting and information technology to gather information and evidence,” he told newsmen here yesterday. 

Yusof was charged with soliciting a RM6mil bribe in an arbitration matter worth RM25mil. 

Mustafar added that MACC was able to complete the investigation in a speedy way and laid the charge against Yusof thanks to cooperation from the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA) and Bar Council. 

“This prosecution should also allay the perception that MACC only charges minor cases,” he said. Separately, KLRCA commended the MACC for its speed and professionalism in launching the investigation. 

“This can only be seen as a positive outcome of the transformation MACC is embarking on and brings us closer to winning the nation’s war on corruption,” said KLRCA director Prof Datuk Sundra Rajoo. 

Yesterday, The Star ran an exclusive report that an arbitrator would be charged with corruption for the first time in Malaysia. 

An arbitrator is akin to a judge in a civil litigation and the disputes, usually involving millions of ringgit, revolve around contracts for engineering, construction and mechanical and electrical works. 

But, unlike a court judgment, arbitral awards handed down here are enforceable in 148 countries. Prof Sundra Rajoo added that Yusuf was no longer listed as an arbitrator with KLRCA. 

“We had information of this issue when it was time for listing last year and I decided not to include his name until the matter is cleared.”

Source : The Star

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