The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) will block its employees’s access to the Internet if they are found to be accessing prohibited websites.

The royal commission of inquiry (RCI) into the death of Teoh Beng Hock was told today that if an enforcement officer is caught browsing prohibited websites such as those containing pornography, he will be barred from accessing the Internet.
 
“If someone is caught (watching pornography) I will ask the (management) to restrict the officers’ access to all websites except the MACC’s,” said former Selangor MACC deputy director Hishamuddin Hashim.

Inquiry head James Foong had asked Hishamuddin about other measures that would be taken by Hishamuddin if an enforcement officer is caught red-handed.

“I will reprimand the officer,” he said.

Hishamuddin, now the Negri Sembilan director, was overseeing operations as the deputy director of the Selangor MACC in 2009.

The royal panel revealed last week that after questioning Teoh, several enforcement officers had spent their time surfing and watching porn in their office cubicles.

NONEAssistant superintendents Mohd Ashraf Mohd Yunus (left) and Raymond Nion, who stayed back after the questioning session, were downloading porn as well as music and movies.

Nion was in charge of taking the statement of Kajang councillor Tan Boon Wah, who was held for about 17 hours from July 15 in the Selangor MACC office.

This information was obtained by the royal panel’s private investigator Michael Leslie Squires, who had checked on the computers of all MACC officers based then on the 14th and 15th floors of Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam.

Among other findings, Squires in his report also said that he could not detect the virus attack claimed by another officer, Arman Alies, who testified that his first investigation diary was wiped out due to a virus and he had had to reformat his computer.

Arman and Ashraf had quizzed Teoh overnight on July 15, 2009 about alleged misappropriation of state funds misappropriation by his employer and Seri Kembangan assemblyperson Ean Yong Hian Wah.

Teoh's body was found on the fifth floor service corridor of Plaza Masalam on July 16.

Hishamuddin brushed aside complaints against several MACC officers, saying these are usually made by suspects to negate their cautioned statements.

azlan“The suspects do this after being advised by their lawyers or accomplices to lodge complaints against MACC officers to the police,” he said.

He added that he would refer the officer to the division governing “excellence and professionalism” for further examination.

MACC 'living in the Stone Age'

Bar Council lawyer Christopher Leong suddenly asked about a police report Hishamuddin had lodged.

On Saturday, Hishamuddin made a complaint that he “threatened” by a member of public seated in the public gallery.

“I was walking into the witness room on Saturday and this man shouted at me and said something he was not suppose too say. I felt like he was threatening me,” he said.

He added that two representatives of the Bar Council and conducting officer Awang Amardajaya Awang Mahmud were present at the scene at that time.

Leong asked him to elaborate on what exactly took place, but Foong interrupted and told the lawyer to let the police investigate the matter since an official report has been made.

The lawyer asked if the MACC has a procedure to centralise all investigation diaries on the computer system.

However, Hishamuddin said there is no such “management system” and added that hard copies of documents, which are exhibits, cannot be scanned and stored in the computer.

Foong interjected to comment that the MACC is “living in the Stone Age”.

“All the computers in their office are just used for word processing... they are very backward,” he said.