A Malaysian parliamentary committee is calling for the former head of a troubled state-owned investment firm to be investigated over allegations of financial mismanagement.
The Public Accounts Committee released a 106-page report Thursday accusing the management of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) of losing as much as $12 billion between 2009 and 2013 through a series of complex overseas transactions. The panel says ex-chief executive officer Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi should be held responsible for what it calls the "constraints and shortcomings" of 1MDB's management practices.
The PAC also called for fund's advisory board, chaired by Prime Minister Najib Razak, be dissolved.
Hours after the panel's report was released, 1MDB's board of directors collectively offered their resignations to the finance ministry. The board released a statement saying the decision is meant to "facilitate any follow-up investigations as recommended by the PAC."
The fund, created to assist in Malaysian development projects, has since sold much of its assets in an effort to reduce its debts.
The investigation into 1MDB's activities is part of a larger scandal involving allegations of graft against Prime Minster Najib. Najib has been under pressure to resign since revelations surfaced last July that he received about $700 million in his private bank accounts that appeared to have come from 1MDB.
Malaysia's attorney-general eventually cleared Najib of any wrongdoing, saying that $681 million transferred to the prime minister's personal accounts was a personal donation from the Saudi royal family given to him without any consideration.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that investigators believe nearly $1 billion has been funneled into Najib's personal accounts through agencies, banks and companies linked to 1MDB.
Najib has denied any allegations of wrongdoing, but he fired several high-ranking officials from his government who have demanded his resignation.
