Decisions of the Disciplinary Committee of Malaysian Institute of Accountants (‘Institute’) against members pursuant to Rule 18(1) of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (Disciplinary) Rules 2002
Sitharthan Maran (38811) a sole proprietor of Messrs. Sithar & Co (‘the Firm’) had been punished and imposed a fine of RM2000-00 and costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 28/6/2022 for failing to lodge the annual return of the Firm to the Institute for the year 2020 by 31/1/2020 as required under the Institute By-Laws despite given extension period until 31/1/2021.
Roszilawati Ibrahim (23015) as one of the directors of Five Dimensions Advisory Sdn Bhd (‘FDA’) had been punished and imposed a fine of RM1000-00 and costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 28/6/2022 for having advertised on or about 6/7/2020 for audit staff recruitment in www.jobstreet.com, under FDA which may lead the public at large to infer that FDA is an audit firm providing audit services, when in fact FDA is prohibited to do so.
Nur Hairani Zainuddin (46023) as the duly employed account manager of Rasumi Medipharma Sdn. Bhd. (“the Company”) had been reprimanded and imposed a costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 19/7/2022 for having failed to finalise the audited accounts of the Company for the year 2019, resulting in the Company being unable to acquire a banking facility for the sum of RM1 million from RHB Bank and further incurring an expense of RM9,998.20 being the legal fees imposed for the RHB Banking Facility. She had failed to also complete the management account of the Company for the year 2020 and failed to have a proper duty handover pertaining to the matters involving Inland Revenue Board upon her resignation on 1/9/2020.
Muhammad Arzim Naim (26432) as the sole proprietor of a non-audit firm, Arzim Associates (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 6 months effective 15/8/2022, imposed a fine of RM5000-00 and costs of RM5000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 19/7/2022 for having failed to lodge the annual return of the Firm with the Institute for the year 2020 by 31/1/2020 as required under the Institute’s By-Laws and had continuously failed to lodge the same, despite repeated reminders from the Institute, till the date a complaint was lodged against him.
Yeoh Nam Kooi (1022):-
- as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co. (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 9 months effective 1/9/2022, imposed a fine of RM3000-00 and costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for the:-
i. on or about 7/9/2018 [i.e., the date he signed the Auditors’ Report in the Reports and Audited Financial Statements for the FYE 31/3/2018 for O.A.A. Heavy Machinery Sdn. Bhd.) (‘OHM’)];
ii. on or about 15/10/2018 [i.e., the date you signed the Auditors’ Report in the Reports and Audited Financial Statements for the FYE 30/6/2018 for M.R. & Sons Vehicle Parts Sdn. Bhd (‘MSVP’)],
iii. on or about 15/6/2017 [i.e., the date you signed the Auditors’ Report in the Reports and Audited Financial Statements for the FYE 31/12/2017 for Resana Sdn. Bhd. (‘RSB’)] ; and
iv. on or about 12/6/2018 [i.e., the date you signed the Auditors’ Report in the Reports and Audited Financial Statements for the FYE 31/12/2017 for KLCY Services Sdn. Bhd. (‘KLCY’)], collectively referred to as his “Audit Clients”.
whereby he had, via a letter dated 7/1/2020 revealed to the Complainant that he had a close relationship with the company secretaries of his respective Audit Clients, in that they either assisted him in managing the Firm or participated in doing the audit work of the Firm, thereby he had impaired his professional independence as a statutory auditor. - as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co. (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 9 months effective 1/9/2022 and imposed a fine of RM3000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for he had during the period from 27/12/2016 till 22/12/2017 where a purported audit staff in the Firm was appointed as the Director of RSB, an audit client of the Firm, till the date the Reports and Audited Financial Statement for the FYE 31/12/2016 for RSB was filed with SSM, had signed-off the auditor’s report of RSB, for that financial year, despite the purported audit staff was a director of RSB.
- as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co. (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 9 months effective 1/9/2022 and imposed a fine of RM3000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for he had during the period from 26/10/2017 till 12/6/2019 (‘the 1st material time’) had acted as the auditor for KLCY in its Report and Audited Financial Statements for the FYE 31/12/2017 and 31/12/2018, despite two of his staffs are also acting as the directors of KLCY during the material time. The 1st material time is the date of both staffs were appointed as directors of KLCY till the date the Report and Audited Financial Statement for KLCY FYE 31/12/2018 was lodged with SSM. Further, during the period from 13/6/2019 till 4/2/2020 he had continued to act as the auditor for KLCY despite the two staffs remain acting as the directors of KLCY and also as staffs of the Firm simultaneously.
- as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co. (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 9 months effective 1/9/2022 and imposed a fine of RM3000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for he had on or about 4/2/2020 (‘the material time’) had shared a significant component of professional resources in the Firm and KLCY being human resources wherein the two staffs were acting as the directors of KLCY and at the same time performed the audit work for the Firm and induced the Firm’s potential clients to appoint the Firm as their auditor and KLCY as the company secretary simultaneously.
- as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co. (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 9 months effective 1/9/2022 and imposed a fine of RM3000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for he had on or about 8/12/2018, 7/1/2020 and 4/2/2020 (‘the material times’) had impaired the Firm’s professional independence by engaging with suspicious and questionable business arrangements between the Firm and MYCO Management (‘MYM’), KLCY, Ng Beant & Company (‘NBC’), Top Business Advisory Sdn. Bhd.(‘TBA’) and Zailan & Associates (‘ZA’) respectively.
- as the sole proprietor of Messrs. MY & Co (‘the Firm’) had been imposed a fine of RM3000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for having advertised, promoted, and/or represented in the Firm’s website known as http://mynco.weebly.com on or about 4/2/2020 that the Firm offers amongst others tax services which may lead the public at large to infer that he is a tax agent when in fact his tax agent license had expired on 16/7/2006.
Tan Hooi Chia (29513) as sole proprietor of an audit firm, T & Co (‘the Firm’) had been suspended for 3 months effective 15/9/2022, imposed a fine of RM3000-00 and costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 for having committed a breach of independence requirement of her audit firm on 14 till 20/8/2019 and 11/9/2019, as discovered by the Practice Review Department (‘PRD’). This is pursuant to the discovery by PRD that the audit engagements of her Firm, namely VKG Automart Sdn Bhd, Sungguh Kemajuan Sdn Bhd and Eyeland Optometry Sdn Bhd had also engaged one other member of the Institute, of Avenue Secretarial Services as the company secretary of the said audit engagements of her Firm, wherein the member is her biological mother.
Tan Boon Jin (1087):-
- being the sole proprietor of Messrs. B.J. Tan & Co. had been suspended for 12 months effective 1/1/2023, imposed a fine of RM5000-00 and costs of RM4000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 after the Firm has been rated as “Type 4 – Unsatisfactory” as indicated in the Practice Review Report dated 30/1/2019 which detailed the weaknesses in the audit work performed.
- being the sole proprietor of Messrs. B.J. Tan & Co. had been suspended for 12 months effective 1/1/2023 and imposed a fine of RM5000-00 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Institute on 29/8/2022 where during the review and the examination of his audit working papers on certain of the Firm’s audit clients selected for practice review (i.e. Sunbay Resources Sdn Bhd for FYE 31/7/2017 and Builtmax Properties Sdn Bhd for FYE 31/12/2017) together with their statutory records, had revealed that his son served as the company secretary of those audit clients. Consequently, this would constitute a threat to independence of the Firm. However, such significant threat was not evaluated and necessary safeguards were not applied by him to eliminate the threat or reduce it to an acceptable level.
