Audit of 1MDB has begun, says Auditor-General

The National Audit Department began an audit of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) soon after being instructed to do so by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak last week, Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang said Tuesday.

He said the department would give priority to undertaking the audit of the government-owned strategic development company in an independent and professional manner.

"Surely, the department will give priority in this matter, and we hope we can do the work in a calm and peaceful atmosphere," he told a news conference on the audit of 1MDB, here.

Ambrin said he had met with 1MDB chief executive officer Arul Kanda Kandasamy and the latter had stated his commitment to cooperate fully with the department in the audit.

He also said that the audit department had begun to gather relevant information and was scrutinising all documents as well as interviewing the relevant people.

The audit would involve calling up all quarters, including those who made the allegations, the former 1MDB CEO and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak himself, if this was necessary to aid the audit, he said.

"We have to do what we have to do and if there's a need to talk to certain parties, we will," he said, while calling for the cooperation of all parties concerned.

He said the auditing process would not only be confined to the accounts of 1MDB but also include the assets, liabilities, corporate governance and equities.

"For me, this is a broad mandate. Any matter related to it, we need to study and look into it. We want to know how the company is being managed," he said.