Friends and relatives confounded
Published on: Sunday, October 09, 2016
Kota Kinabalu: The revelations on how State Water Department director Ag Mohd Tahir Ag Mohd Talib and his deputy, Teo Chee Kong, managed to amass hundreds of millions of ringgit had confounded even those closest of them.Friends, colleagues and relatives could not believe that investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission had found paper trails linking the two senior officers with alleged kickbacks from federally funded projects to improve water supply in Sabah, as well ties to 38 companies owned by their family members and proxies.Ag Tahir was described by a friend as a low-profile officer who played golf and would diligently attend government functions, as well as social events in his hometown of Bongawan, about 70km south of here, New Straits Times report.
ADVERTISEMENT
"He has a small circle of golfing friends...you can see him anywhere from five-star hotels to coffee shops. "But he's not the boisterous type like his deputy. Ah Tahir is one who is careful with his words."The department director rarely made comments in the media and had, instead, delegated the duty to Teo, who worked as the district engineer here for many years before being promoted.
ADVERTISEMENT
Teo, from Membakut (a sub-district adjacent to Bongawan), was an avid participant in running events, particularly local charity runs."When is comes to dealing with the public, Teo normally represents the department as a spokesman, whether it's on shortfalls of water supply, disruption or even plans," said the friend.
ADVERTISEMENT
Many still could not believe the overwhelming amount of money seized by the MACC.A close relative of Ag Tahir said he cried after seeing photographs of the alleged loot in a press conference on Wednesday."I know he drives big cars... so do his wife and children. But to think about the amount of money allegedly recovered from him, it's hard to swallow," said the relative, who is also a civil servant.A retired civil servant said the action taken by the MACC would jolt many officers and ensure that they were "kept in check"."The government will need to look into many procedures when if comes to awarding contracts, big and small alike."And this culture of 'selective tender', where contractors would come together and decide among themselves on who should get the work, should be done away with."To get away with millions of ringgit in kickbacks for years, the retiree said, would need the involvement of others and not just the top officers."It goes beyond that and in this scandal, since the MACC said it was linked to federal funds, they need to cast a wider net to Kuala Lumpur. So far, more than RM115 million has been recovered in cash and from banks.About RM3.64 million worth of jewellery, RM500,000 worth of designer goods, at least nine luxury vehicles and 1227 land titles were also seized. Efforts are on to recover more money believed to be stashed overseas.The MACC began surveillance on the two officers a years ago before making their move on Tuesday. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
The two officer were arrested together with Teo's brother and his accountant.Some 70 MACC officers are compiling evidence before presenting their case in court to determine how the suspects stashed the money, which has an average collection of over RM50,000 per day for the last six years.