PAC Wants 1MDB To Give Auditor-General Full Cooperation

KUALA LUMPUR, July 8 — The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has called for 1 Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) to cooperate fully with the Auditor-General in the ongoing audit.

This was because there were obstacles in the Auditor-Geral obtaining bank statements and agreements when requested, said PAC chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed.

“There were hinderances faced by the A-G as 1MDB was not forthcoming with them. I hope 1MDB can give them the information they are asking for to help them complete their investigation,” he said during a press conference Thursday after Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang presented his interim report.

Ambrin had presented the interim audit report to the PAC chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed on Thursday morning.

The meeting is expected to last until 4pm with a possibility of continuing on Friday if there was not enough time for questions.

Last Thursday, Nur Jazlan said that the bi-partisan committee would also ask the A-G over the scope of the audit, whether it was limited or restricted and on whether the witnesses were co-operative.

Nur Jazlan had previously also said that all information provided by the A-G will be used when questioning 1MDB chief executives and board of directors early next month.

Nur Jazlan also said that it was up to the A-G whether the interim report’s findings would be revealed to Members of Parliament and the public.

A more comprehensive report is expected later in the year.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published an article last week quoting an “unnamed investigator”, claiming that almost US$700mil (RM2.63bil) of 1MDB funds went into Najib’s personal accounts.

The Prime Minister’s Office responded by saying that the articles were “political sabotage” while the 1MDB insisted that no funds had been transferred to Najib’s accounts.

Najib has also refuted the claims, maintaining that the allegations are a political ploy engineered by his opponents in an attempt to topple him, among them former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

–The Star