ACA to quiz Nallakaruppan on his RM60m allegation

ACA to quiz Nallakaruppan on his RM60m allegation

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 The Anti-Corruption Agency wants Datuk S. Nallakaruppan to brief the agency over his allegation that PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had received RM60 million from Magnum Corporation, of which he (Nallakaruppan) was a director. As the allegation was serious, ACA deputy director-general Datuk Abu Kassim Mohamed said Nallakaruppan, who was once Anwar"s friend, would be called as soon as possible by the agency. -We are advising him to lodge an official report with us to explain his allegation. We need to gather vital information pertaining to the matter.

-ACA can only begin a probe if there"s a (official) report, and not through hearsay. -Therefore, we want him to brief us first,- he said after the closing ceremony of the Executive Certificate Course for Strategic Management . Abu Kassim said the anti-graft agency must look into various angles of the allegation before taking further action. Asked whether ACA would be calling the management of Magnum Corporation or Anwar himself to facilitate the agency's investigations into the matter, Abu Kassim said: -If necessary, we will call other related quarters to explain. It all depends on the need of our investigation. -But at the moment, we will only be calling Nallakaruppan to assist us. We also have to verify many things before starting a probe.- In his allegation made two days ago in Bukit Mertajam, Nallakaruppan, who is Malaysian Indian United Party president, also alleged that Anwar had approved many licences for gambling when the latter was finance minister. Earlier in his closing speech, Abu Kassim stressed the importance of fighting the scourge of corruption as it was needed to guarantee the survival of a government. He also said a corrupt system invariably led to corrupt public decisions and would lead to economic disaster, and therefore it was important to focus on new strategies in tackling issues related to graft. Twenty participants from Nigeria, Brunei, Bhutan, Mongolia and Malaysia attended the two-week programme held here. Bernama