PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has begun its investigation into alleged improprieties involving Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd (FGV), a day after its group president and CEO Datuk Zakaria Arshad was told to take an indefinite leave of absence.
The MACC took a statement from Zakaria, who was called to its headquarters here yesterday.
The commission’s next move will be to send investigators to FGV headquarters in Kuala Lumpur to “see what they can find” and determine if there is a case.
Zakaria, 57, arrived at the MACC headquarters at 2.20pm alone, with no lawyers or associates accompanying him.
He brought along a stack of files, which he claimed were documents on FGV.
Zakaria looked calm when he arrived and maintained the same demeanour when he left some four hours later.
“The MACC asked me to come today. I’m also here to hand over some documents to them,” he told reporters, adding that his session was not over.
“I will be called again to give my statement, and I will give my full co-operation.”
MACC deputy chief commissioner Datuk Azam Baki told The Star: “We will go through his statement and will decide what to do next.”
Azam also confirmed that anti-graft investigators would go to FGV headquarters at 10am today to get hold of more documents.
On Tuesday, Zakaria and three other FGV officers were asked to take a leave of absence, which chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad said was a decision made by the board.
The other three are FGV chief financial officer Ahmad Tifli Mohd Talha, FGV Trading CEO Ahmad Salman Omar and Delima Oil Products senior general manager Kamarzaman Abd Karim.
The board’s decision came a day after Zakaria was told to resign by Isa following a series of board meetings since May 31 concerning delayed payments owed to Delima Oil Products Sdn Bhd by Safitex Trading LLC, an Afghan company with an array of businesses and headquartered in Dubai.
Zakaria subsequently urged the MACC to investigate allegations of improprieties in FGV and asked the commission to probe the parties behind the contracts.
Sources: The Star by mazwin nik anis, he mananthini sivanandam, syed azhar
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