Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) today submitted a memorandum to the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) requesting an investigation to be conducted on the company's alleged mismanagement of finances.

This followed a DAP call to the ACA for a probe into the senior management of Proton Holdings Bhd yesterday,

ACA's Senior Assistant Commissioner II Abu Zubir Mahfodz, who received the PKR memorandum, confirmed that it had fulfilled the three prerequisites required for an inquiry into Proton's alleged mismanagement, that was featured in an expose by business weekly The Edge and an article by the News Straits Times, both carried on Monday.

The conditions fulfilled that warrant an investigations were that a report was made by a member of the public against the concerned, that there is written proof that the transgression had occurred and that there were evidence of victims of abuses (the board of management/shareholders).

On July 31, The Edge published the four-page expose based a report by US audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), commissioned by the management in September last year, that the business weekly managed to obtain.

"The allegations were made in the press as to the mismanagement in Proton. We are not sure whether these allegations are true or false, but we certainly want investigations to follow," said PKR deputy secretary-general Dr Xavier Jayakumar.

He was accompanied to the ACA headquarters in Kuala Lumpur by the party's deputy secretary-general Ang Hiok Gai, information chief Tian Chua and deputy youth chiefs S Manikavasagam and Shaidah Kamarulzaman.

"With all these conditions fulfilled, the ACA does not need the prime minister or the cabinet to approve the investigation. ACA has the power to act independently, to open up the investigation, and we urge them to do so," said Tian Chua.

Two individuals involved

The reports carried by both news organisations alleged that only two individuals were involved in several big decisions involving billions before the board of management was informed.

Highlighted transactions of business dealings that investigations were called for include the purchase of MV Augusta in 2004, Proton's investments in China and PT Tracoma, the circumstances leading to the purchase of Lotus Group International Limited and the cost of construction/equipment for Proton's Tanjong Malim factory.

They also include matters in relation to research and development (R&D) budgets and expenditures and matters in relation to reporting of litigation development and potential troublesome operational matters.

PKR in the memorandum stated that "they believe and are confident that certain individuals involved in the management of Proton have mismanaged company funds, participated in abuse of power and unethical corporate governance and were committed criminal breach of trust."

The party urged the ACA to take action against former Proton CEO Tengku Mahaleel Tengku Ariff and the individuals responsible for the mismanagement of Proton to the point of incurring losses amounting to several billion ringgit.

"The reason why this cannot be ignored is that Proton, unlike MAS, eats into the life of every Malaysian. Much of our money has been used to protect Proton when it was unprofitable, and the money that was used has been squandered," said Xavier.