PETALING JAYA: The royal commission of inquiry into Tabung Haji (TH) found that senior officers implicated in multiple misconduct cases had their penalties repeatedly watered down on appeal, with all five involved still employed at TH or its subsidiaries as of 2022.
The RCI report, submitted to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on Aug 30, 2022 and declassified today, said the pattern extended across police reports, internal disciplinary proceedings, referrals to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), and ongoing court and arbitration cases – with authorities and TH management alike taking too long, and often too little action, relative to the scale of the wrongdoing uncovered.
Dismissals reduced to demotions
The report said TH’s disciplinary committee charged five senior officers – group chief financial officer Rozaida Omar, chief operating officer Adi Azuan Abdul Ghani, senior general manager Rifina Ariff, chief human resources officer Hisham Harun, and legal adviser Hazlina Khalid – over four clusters of misconduct.
These included the sale of TH’s stake in PT TH Indo Plantations (THIP), a RM22.12 million Yayasan Tabung Haji contribution made without required ministerial approval, the disputed 2017 hibah declaration, and submission of false claims to TH’s payment unit.
It said while TH’s disciplinary committee initially imposed dismissal for the THIP and hibah cases and demotion for the Yayasan Tabung Haji case, an appeals committee later reduced nearly every penalty.
Only one demotion, over the false claims case, was upheld on appeal.
The report noted that all five officers remained with TH as of the report’s conclusion, several having moved into senior positions at subsidiaries, including TH Hotel & Residence, TH Plantations, and TH Properties.
Process took up to 19 months
The RCI also criticised the pace of TH’s internal disciplinary process, noting that one case took 19 months from an officer’s written response to a final decision, another took 15 months, and a third took 10 months.
It recommended the process be streamlined and expedited to be seen as effective, efficient, fair and transparent.
Separately, TH management filed four police reports between November 2018 and January 2019, according to the report.
Two remain unresolved years later – one over the 2012 sale of TH’s 95% stake in THIP to Indonesia’s PT Borneo Pacific for about US$910 million, alleging misrepresentation and concealment; and another over Trurich Resources’ US$58 million purchase of palm oil plantations in Kalimantan between 2008 and 2009, alleging manipulated land-suitability reports.
Both investigations have been held up pending cooperation from Indonesian authorities.
A third report, over alleged misuse of Yayasan Tabung Haji funds, has been referred to the Attorney-General’s Chambers.
A fourth, over the disputed 2017 hibah declaration, has also been completed by police and referred to the AG’s Chambers for a decision on prosecution.
The commission said authorities must act firmly and promptly on every police report or complaint lodged.
It said six matters have been referred to MACC and remain under investigation, including alleged corruption in TH Plantation’s purchase of Ladang Weida Bhd, alleged abuse of power in the leasing of two restaurants at TH’s headquarters and KL Sentral, alleged corruption by a former chief operating officer over renovation works, alleged document falsification involving rubber seedling supplies in Sandakan, and alleged misconduct at two TH Properties subsidiaries.
The Cabinet approved the declassification of the RCI report earlier today.
The RCI was established in 2021 to investigate TH’s management, operations and asset-related issues between 2014 and 2020, following concerns over its governance and financial position.
