The Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) has promised a full investigation into allegations that false claims for tsunami aid had been made in Penang, one of the states hardest hit by the disaster.

ACA Penang director Abu Kassim Mohamed said it had received information from nine people over false claims and at least four were to be investigated, the Star reported yesterday.

"Although none of the complainants submitted written reports, we will still investigate based on the information given to us," Abu Kassim was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

He added that the penalty for those found guilty would be a maximum fine of five times the amount falsely claimed and up to 20 years in jail.

No one to be protected

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said that no one would be protected in the agency's investigation.

"We are not protecting anybody in investigations carried out by the ACA," he was quoted as saying by the official Bernama news agency.

"If there is proof, obviously the ACA can send the report to the attorney-general to bring charges."

Sixty-nine people were killed by the December 26 tsunamis in Malaysia, most of them on the northern island of Penang.

The government stopped collections for tsunami aid at the end of January after Malaysians donated over RM80 million to the National Disaster Relief Fund.

The families of the Malaysians killed were allocated RM20,000 ringgit each, while hundreds of people whose houses or fishing boats were destroyed or damaged are also eligible for compensation.