Inquiry Panel Report On Azam Share Issue Ready Within Days - PM Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the report by the Special Inquiry Committee on the share ownership issue involving Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki will be ready in a few days.

He said further action, including whether there are grounds for the investigation to be extended, will be decided based on the report.

As such, he said the proposal to establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the matter is premature.

“Regarding the proposal for an RCI, it is rather premature, too early, because the investigation led by the Attorney General will be completed this week, in a few days. So let us first see whether there is justification or rationale to extend it, and in what scope it needs to be examined.

“... let us follow the process. First, we obtain the report from the Attorney General, which will not be delayed, as he informed me that the report will be prepared within the next one or two days. Then, if there is rationale to extend (the investigation), we will extend it,” he said.

Anwar was responding to a supplementary question by V. Ganabatirau (PH-Klang), who wanted to know the specific actions that could be expected from the proposed RCI into the issue, including its scope and method of investigation, during Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Attorney General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar chairs the inquiry committee, which also comprises Public Service director-general Tan Sri Wan Ahmad Dahlan Abdul Aziz and Treasury secretary-general Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican.

The Prime Minister stressed that any investigation must be conducted transparently and based on facts, and not merely on unfounded suspicions.

“On the type and form of investigation, I have explained that we should first follow the process. Why are such harsh views being directed at one party when we have only been asked to follow the process?” he said.

“Usually, in allegations involving any civil servant, we first follow the process of obtaining a report from the civil servant concerned. In this context, we have widened the scope, not only in terms of administrative procedures and regulations, but expanded it further — which is why the Attorney General is chairing it,” he said.

Meanwhile, Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said the value of assets seized through enforcement actions against corruption and illegal syndicates surged to RM15.5 billion for the 2023 to 2025 period.

He said this was a sharp rise compared with only RM37 million in 2018 and RM1.2 billion in 2019, attributing it to the commitment of enforcement agencies, including the MACC, the Inland Revenue Board, the Royal Malaysian Customs Department and the Royal Malaysia Police.

“This has led to an improvement in our Corruption Perceptions Index. Measures will continue to be taken, but through information-sharing and close cooperation among enforcement bodies,” he said.

Anwar said that between November 2025 and February 2026, high-profile cases included charges against two Sabah state assemblymen, the prosecution of a former senior political secretary to the Prime Minister, and four senior officers of the Malaysian Armed Forces.

He was replying to Ganabatirau’s original question on the total amount of money and assets recovered by the MACC throughout 2025 in corruption and abuse of power cases, as well as comparative statistics before and after the MADANI Government.

-- BERNAMA