[ad_1]
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has charged a deputy director of an agency under the Ministry of Education in the Court of Sessions here of inciting his superior to fire a whistleblower for alerting the anti-bribery body about his bad behavior.
Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) Deputy Director Wafiy Abd Aziz, 35, pleaded not guilty on Friday (September 18) to the charge under Section 10 (3) (b) of the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2010 (Law 711).
He was accused of having incited the then president of EMGS, Datuk Abdul Rahman Mohamed Shariff, to sign a dismissal document against the complainant, also an employee of EMGS, in retaliation for having exposed the latter’s misconduct to the MACC on 9 January of this year.
Under Law 711, it is a crime to incite or allow another person to take or threaten to take harmful action against a complainant for any reason under subparagraph (a) (i) or (ii).
If found guilty, the accused can be sentenced to a prison term of not more than 15 years or a fine of not more than RM100,000 or both.
Presiding Judge Azman Ahmad set bail at RM15,000 and ordered the defendants to report to the nearest MACC office once a month.
Wafiy, who was also charged with corruption under the MACC Act last July, was asked to surrender his passport and was reminded not to manipulate or disturb the prosecution’s witnesses until the trial was over.
The accused was represented by a team of three lawyers of Messrs. Salehuddin Saidin.
The MACC team of lawyers was led by Afif Ali.
On Thursday (September 17), the MACC said the charge against Wafiy was the first under the Whistleblower Protection Act since it took effect in 2010.
The anti-bribery agency said it would not hesitate to investigate those who attempt to take action against whistleblowers.
He said the case would encourage the public to cooperate with enforcement agencies to provide information on cases of corruption and abuse of power without fear.
“The charges in this case are also expected to teach a lesson to those trying to punish whistleblowers,” the MACC said.
In a related case, last January, EMGS President Abdul Rahman pleaded not guilty to a money laundering charge at the Session Court in Johor Bahru.
Abdul Rahman also faces three counts of criminal breach of trust involving RM178,000 in the Kuala Lumpur Session Court.
EMGS, formed in 2012, is a wholly owned Ministry of Education company that operates a one-stop center for international student services in conjunction with the Department of Immigration.
It has a one-stop shop in Kuala Lumpur and is the main body managing the movement of international students in Malaysia, including matters such as facilitating the processing of their visas.
[ad_2]
