A RM300 MILLION loan from a Sabah-owned bank to cash-strapped budget carrier AirAsia is now being investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), reports Free Malaysia Today (FMT).

MACC Sabah director S. Karunanithy told the news site an investigation has been opened on the Sabah Development Bank Sdn Bhd (SDB) loan, which was recently questioned by new Chief Minister Hajiji Noor.

Karunanithy, however, declined to elaborate further on the investigation, saying only that it is being undertaken to check for MACC Act 2009 violations.

Sabah paper the Daily Express also reported that Hajiji had ordered a state investigation into how the loan was “disbursed in a hurry” by the previous Warisan Plus government lead by Mohd Shafie Apdal.

The Daily Express quoted a source as saying that Hajiji had engaged an independent audit firm to undertake an investigation into the loan application.

A photo purportedly showing the carrier’s top executives meeting over lunch with Warisan-linked businessmen and made the rounds on social media two weeks ago had tongues wagging in the state.

The photo also bore an eye-catching caption that read: “This is how you get a RM300 million loan in Sabah! Over a delicious lunch of fish head curry!” – October 28, 2020.