THE Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) will act against the leak of a statement it took as part of investigations into the land scandal case of former Johor exco Abd Latif Bandi and that has implicated Menteri Besar Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

Deputy chief commissioner (operations) Azam Baki said the anti-graft agency will lodge a police report about the document that had been posted on social media and had gone viral.

The statement was by one of the accused in the exco’s land scandal case, Azam said, and the MACC was concerned that the leak would prejudice the case, which was being heard in court.

“The MACC will lodge a police report about the leak and seek action against those who made it go viral. It is prejudicial as the case is still in court,” he said in a statement.

Yesterday, Johor assemblyman Wong Shu Qi alleged at the state legislative assembly sitting that Khaled had received RM12 million from a developer to change the Bumiputera status of a residential plot of land to non-Bumiputera.

She said this information was based on a witness statement in an investigation by the MACC into Latif, the former Johor exco for housing and local government, and property consultant Amir Shariffuddin Abdul Raub. 

In April, both were charged with corruption involving bribes worth more than RM30.3 million between 2013 and last year and pleaded not guilty. Latif has resigned his exco post.

Johor Pakatan Harapan leaders have, meanwhile, urged Khaled to answer the allegations levelled against him.

“Khaled must come forward and answer these questions immediately,” it said today in a statement signed by Pakatan Johor chairman Muhyiddin Yassin, vice-presidents Shahruddin Md Salleh,

Aminolhuda Hassan, Hassan Karim and Liew Chin Tong, and state elections director Salahuddin Ayub.

They also said the alleged graft could be one of the reasons why Johor had become the state with the highest number of unsold residential property units at 27%, according to a recent Bank Negara Malaysia report on the country’s housing problems. – November 28, 2017.