MALAYSIAN Anti-Corruption Commissioner Mohd Shukri Abdull had expressed a desire to quit about a year ago, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“He told me last year as he had been holding the post a long time. It was I who took a long time to find a replacement,” he told a media conference at his Hari Raya open house in Putrajaya today.

Yesterday Shukri said he was cutting short his tenure as he had achieved what he set out to do.

“My mission is accomplished. I have placed MACC on the right track.

“All officers are united. They are battling corruption together and the support from the public has been strong,” he told The Malaysian Insight in a statement.

Human rights lawyer Latheefa Koya succeeds Shukri effective June 1 for a term fo two years.

Latheefa, 46, is the first woman chief of MACC, and the first person without a background in law enforcement to lead the anti-graft agency.

Shukri was appointed MACC chief on May 18 last year.

He had served with the commission for 32 years before opting for early retirement on July 31, 2016 as deputy chief commissioner (operations).

He was reinstated by Dr Mahathir following the general election last year. – June 5, 2019.