KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 — Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam Malaysia’s (Yapeim) should come clean and explain if it is the owner of a golf simulator centre in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, PKR-linked National Oversight and Whistleblowers (NOW) said today.

NOW director Akmal Nasir said if true, Yapeim should disclose why a federal charity organisation needs the high-end sports equipment, how many simulators it owned and the cost to own and run the centre.

“What is the need for this golf simulator whereby in Yapeim’s budget for 2013, it is to fulfil Yapeim’s corporate sports programme?

“To me, all these has to be looked into since Yapeim is a charitable body as per its motto; developing community through a charitable culture… I don’t know why the corporate activity is specific to golf,” he told a news conference at the NOW headquarters in Sungai Besi here.

Akmal said that based on the list of golf games recorded by Yapeim, its biggest programme was held on August 18 2013, during a charity high tea event in conjunction with Yapeim’s Hari Raya celebration in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah involving 56 people, including Sabah state leaders as well as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of religious affairs, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom.

Akmal added that Yapeim’s 2013 budget report also states that other types of development efforts listed in the name of corporate sports and golf games is the establishment of a ‘Pusat Sukan INPUT Golf Simulator’, owned by a subsidiary of Yapeim — Institut Penyelidikan dan Perundingan Yapeim Sdn Bhd (INPUT).

A picture that NOW took of the purported golf simulator centre's signboard in Mentari Business Park, Petaling Jaya was also shown to reporters today, but the sign was for a “Pusat Latihan INPUT Golf” or INPUT Golf Training Centre.

Akmal also produces a copy of he claimed to be Yapeim's financial statement for the year ending December 2014, in which golf simulator equipment was listed as an asset that depreciated by 20 per cent in value, among others.

He said his motivation in making raising the issues linked to Yapeim was to ensure that public contributions to the charity were not being misused.

Yapeim came under scrutiny last month, after NOW alleged that Jamil Khir misused the organisation’s fund for what the group claims were “unnecessary” trips to the United States (US) and Paris, France.

NOW further raised questions over salaries drawn from the charity foundation by its director and deputy, a Wanita Umno leader, and asked if some funds were even used for the recent Rompin by-election.

It also alleged that Yapeim had paid RM290,000 to hold two marriage courses in Paris, France.

Jamil Khir later sued the NOW director over the allegations.