Political bigwigs named in the Pandora Papers include former prime ministers, finance ministers, other past Cabinet members who are believed to have abused their power to gain wealth when they were in positions of authority.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is welcome to probe PKR if the party is found to be involved in abuse of power or misappropriation of funds, party president Anwar Ibrahim said.
The prime minister told the Dewan Rakyat that he has no issues with the anti-graft agency if it wants to investigate PKR and instructed the body to conduct their duties when necessary.
“During a meeting this morning with all these (anti-corruption) bodies, I told them that I do not care which parties (the accused) are from.
“Even if they are from PKR itself. I cannot guarantee that the party is 100% clean,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Tambun MP also said that he has ordered the relevant authorities to continue their probe into prominent individuals named in the Pandora Papers.
He said that agencies like the police, national anti-financial crime centre (NFCC), Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), MACC and Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) have been updating him on the progress of their investigations.
“There are those who have been summoned by the Inland Revenue Board and MACC to explain the hundreds of millions being stored in offshore bank accounts, as well as the source of these funds.
“Investigations are ongoing, and I am satisfied with the steps taken by the authorities,” Anwar said.
Anwar was responding to Noraini Ahmad (Parit Sulong-BN) who asked the prime minister to explain what Putrajaya was doing to restore public confidence following the Pandora Papers revelations.
In October 2021, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), made up of 600 journalists across the world, leaked 11.9 million documents and records from 12 offshore service providers that set up and managed shell firms and trusts in tax havens worldwide, including the Cook Island and British Virgin Islands.
The leak made headlines worldwide and was called the Pandora Papers.
It was reported that at least 10 wealthy Malaysians, including businessmen and politicians, were named in the Pandora Papers, which shed light on offshore companies and trusts used to stash away fortunes and evade taxes.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said had recently said investigations were ongoing and authorities needed additional information from abroad.
Anwar also said Malaysia has among the highest misappropriation of funds and money laundering cases by political leaders and big corporations in the world.
He said this was reported based on the Global Financial Integrity (GFI) report 2010, the Panama Pandora Papers in 2016 and the Pandora Papers in 2017.
He added that most of the large amount of money kept in offshore accounts was believed to be from illegal activities, which include several political leaders in the country.
“The issue affects the national interest as a whole and based on what was revealed in these reports, Malaysia is among the highest due to its economic status and small total population.
“Yes, several countries like China and Saudi Arabia were involved, however, Malaysia is among the top.
“This means most of the money that has been spent and taken out from Malaysia, which is mostly considered illegal, is high,” Anwar said.
Recalling the first time the Pandora Papers were made publicly known in 2017, Anwar said he had raised the issue then and ask the then PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak to take action but said there was no investigation at the time.
Anwar said some 3,000 names — some are legitimate and involve businessmen — in the Pandora Paper have been leaked, adding that the current focus is on political bigwigs.
He said these include former prime ministers, finance ministers, other past Cabinet members who are believed to have abused their power to gain wealth when they were in positions of authority.
He added that his administration has tightened the tender processes to prevent future abuses.
“I want to clarify that there are policies that help the Bumiputera, and there are direct tenders among those companies that can be done, there is no prevention for that.
“But they cannot use the excuse of wanting to help the Bumiputera and ask the companies to give them funds for their personal use or party use,” Anwar said.