THE appointment of Latheefa Koya as the new anti-graft chief by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad was done in accordance to the law, said de facto law minister Liew Vui Keong.

He said the appointment was in line with Section 5(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Act (Act 694) and as such the need to refer the cabinet or a parliamentary select does not arise.

“Section 5(1) states that the appointment is made by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the prime minister, subject to a term of service and any condition as stated in the letter of appointment,” he said.

In Latheefa‘s case, she was appointed for a period of two years effective June 1, 2019.

Section 5(2) gives a separate scenario in the event that an appointee comes from within the civil service.

It spells out the period and the length of service that particular civil servant can serve as MACC chief if he is selected, Liew said in a statement issued in Kota Kinabalu today.

He was responding to the concerns raised by Malaysian Bar president Abdul Fareed Abdul Gafoor over the manner in which the new MACC chief was appointed, including bypassing the parliamentary select committee on major appointments.

Liew said the distinction in the two subsections of Section 5 was clear that there are two sets of appointee the prime minister can advise the King on.

One is from outside the civil service while the other one is from within the civil service, he said.

Earlier, MACC deputy chief commissioner Azam Baki said there had been a number of people from outside the civil service that was appointed chief commissioner. – June 6, 2019.