A CACHE of records at the Finance Ministry, dubbed the “red files”, has yet to be released to officials and auditors, said newly appointed Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Lim said he was shocked to be informed today that top-ranking officers, including Deputy Treasurer-General Siti Zauyah Mohd Desa and Auditor-General Madinah Mohamad, were denied access to certain accounts and reports.

“There are red files that are connected to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), and the main factor is that some of this information was not fully disclosed (to the officers),” he said at a press conference at the ministry today.

Lim demanded that all the accounts be made accessible with immediate effect.

“I have directed that all accounts be made accessible to both the Treasury and the auditor-general in the interest of competency, accountability and transparency.

“We will continue to discover such files to give the government a clearer picture of our financial standing.”

He said despite the challenges, he is optimistic and confident that the Pakatan Harapan government will be able to restore the country’s financial health.

“If it were the previous Barisan Nasional government, we would be bankrupt by now.

“Once we are able to clean up the federal government’s finances, we will be able to further strengthen investor confidence in Malaysia.”

Since taking over Putrajaya, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has pledged to reopen investigations into allegations that several top government officials had siphoned off 1MDB funds through an intricate network of financial transactions. – May 22, 2018.