Azam fights back on claims against him, mulls legal action

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki today said he would take legal action against those who had made accusations against him over the ownership of shares in certain companies.

Speaking at a press conference in Putrajaya, he said the shares in question had been transferred to his brother’s account.

He also said the accusations were made in order to tarnish his reputation of more than 30 years with MACC.

“Regarding the claim that I control many companies, it is a lie spread to destroy my reputation,” he said.

“I strongly deny it, and once I have obtain advice from a lawyer, I will take legal action against those who tarnished my reputation.”

While issuing no further details on the action or parties that would be brought to court, he said the owner of Twitter account “Edisi Siasat” would likely be be subject to action.

Azam also spoke of efforts by those with interests who had an agenda against MACC to erode public trust in the anti-graft agency.

“They used certain parties to put pressure on MACC,” he said.

He said no wrongdoing was committed in allowing his brother, Nasir Baki, to conduct business using his account to buy shares on the open market.

He said this was why he had previously remained silent on the matter.

Former Anti-Corruption Advisory Board member Edmund Gomez was among those who had raised the issue of Azam’s ownership of shares.

Gomez had voiced dissatisfaction over the lack of an investigation regarding the matter, and resigned from the board.

Veteran lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdulla meanwhile had called for a special investigation committee to look into the claims, and opposition MP Gobind Singh Deo had urged Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to take action instead of remaining silent.