TI-M to hold EGM over global report
By YENG AI CHUN (The Star)
PETALING JAYA: Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) will hold an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to discuss the controversial Global Corruption Report (GCR) 2009 as well as other leadership issues.
Acting president Datuk Mohamed Iqbal said the objective of the EGM was to brief members about the report and decide if there was a need for a change in the executive council.
“The exco has agreed to convene an EGM as soon as possible to address the issues and if necessary, to step down, thus providing the opportunity for the members to elect a new exco,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Early this month, Datuk Paul Low resigned as president after his release of the Malaysian Chapter of the Berlin-based report, which cited the Port Klang Free Zone controversy as the biggest scandal of the year.
Low took responsibility of releasing the report without the exco reviewing it.
Since the GCR report was released, certain parties in the country have planned to sue TI-M, including businessman Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.
Exco member Tan Sri Datuk Robert Phang also questioned the report’s accuracy and has since resigned, along with inaugural president and former vice-chairman Tunku Abdul Aziz.
Mohamed Iqbal said a special meeting was called on Oct 5 to address issues relating to the report, and the minutes of the meeting were endorsed and passed by the exco on Monday.
“I am pleased to inform that the leadership of TI-Malaysia is solid and our organisation shall continue to devote itself to fighting and curbing corruption,” he said.
He added that the report was made up of three sections: thematic focus, country reports and research, and Malaysia was included in the 47 country reports.