Mat Zain: Better for cops to probe SD2 than MACC

Former Kuala Lumpur CID chief Mat Zain Ibrahim said the police are better prepared to investigate P Balasubramaniam's second statutory declaration o rather than the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission.

The SD was on the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu involved in the Malaysian government purchase of the French built Scorpene submarine.

Mat Zain (left) said he takes it as fact that senior lawyer Cecil Abraham was allegedly involved in the second SD based on the revelations and challenges by lawyer Haris Ibrahim and carpet businessman Deepak Jaikishian.

"Cecil's silence and not wanting to comment on the allegations only lends to his discredit," he said, adding that the existence of both the SD's cannot be disputed.

He also said that what the legal luminary had done was not just a violation of the Legal Profession Act 1976 but a serious crime under the Penal Code.

"That is why I am adamant that the investigations of both SD1 and SD2 must be carried out by the police and not left to the MACC or the Bar Council," he said in a statement to Malaysiakini.

He pointed out that making or abetting in making a false SD or affidavit is a serious offence, what more if it has something to do with murder.

Hence, it would be better for the police to undertake the probe rather than the MACC in the light of the circumstances surrounding the case, as the anti-graft body was formally  established on Jan 2, 2009 and the second SD came to light sometime  in July 2008, before the various panels were formed.

The former top cop said that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak must have known about Cecil's (right) alleged involvement in the preparation of the SD2 with the help of Deepak, and should know that making or abetting in drawing up a false SD or affidavit is a very serious offence.

"Since Najib may have known of Cecil's alleged involvement in a serious crime, why then Najib not object to the appointment of Cecil as a member of Operations Review Panel (in MACC)?

"You must also take note that the all appointments as members of the MACC Board and Panels are made by Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.

"Najib can turn around to say that he was only DPM when Cecil was appointed and thus had nothing to do with the appointment.

"It was Abdullah Ahmad Badawi the then PM who chose those members, including appointing Cecil," he said.

Najib failed to advise Agong?

If that is Najib's excuse, Mat Zain said then why didn't he remove Cecil or instruct him to resign when he became  PM in April 2009?

He claims that in fact Najib was the person who recommended that Cecil be bestowed the "Tan Sri" title in 2010 and the senior lawyer even represented present Perak Menteri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir in the silver state's imbroglio and his cousin and Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussin's suit against Anwar in the sex video case.

Mat Zain claims that not only did Najib (left) allegedly conceal Cecil's crime, in itself a crime, but most importantly the PM may have failed to advice the Agong against appointing Cecil or reappointing the senior lawyer to the Operations Review Panel.

"In this regard I can say that Najib had deceived the Agong on Cecil's wrongdoings.

"Knowing Cecil's involvement in the making of SD2, Najib can be said to have planted Cecil in ORP in order to suppress the false SD2 from surfacing.

"If Cecil is indeed a person of the highest integrity, then he should've on his own accord declined the appointment as a member of the panel.

"In this regard Cecil can also be cited for having deceived the Agong with regard to his own conduct and criminal culpability," he said.

Mat Zain further alleged that the SD2 matter would not have been prolonged if former Inspector-General of Police Musa Hassan had taken swift action to arrest Balasubramaniam at the earliest opportunity.

Nonetheless, he said Najib may have put himself and his whole family in a vulnerable position, open to blackmail and by extension the whole country.

"The prime minister cannot disavow any knowledge of Bala's (right) SD1 and SD2, nor can he deny Cecil's part in making the false SD2 or that Cecil has brought disrepute to the whole MACC organization.

"The MACC Board should have immediately been convened to recommend that Najib advice the Agong to establish a tribunal to adjudicate Cecil's conduct," he added.

Earlier, Operations Review Panel chairperson Hadenan Abdul Jalil in a Dec 20 statement had said that Cecil had no hand in closing the Balasubramaniam case.

The Operations Review Panel is tasked to act as a check-and-balance mechanism in the MACC, with all the commission's probes submitted to the panel for its feedback.