KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 — The appointment of the new Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Board of Directors chairman to replace Prof Emeritus Datuk Raduan Che Rose has nothing to do with his criminal breach of trust (CBT) cases, according to Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir.

In fact, Zambry said it was just a normal replacement process.

“When the time comes for someone to go, they will go and then we have to find a replacement. That is quite natural for any process of replacement,” he told reporters after the US-Malaysia Vice Chancellor Round Table Dialogue: Partnerships in Higher Education 2024 today.

The Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) in a statement on Tuesday announced that Tan Sri Mohd Khamil Jamil, former managing director of DRB-Hicom Berhad Group, has been appointed to replace Raduan, effective from Nov 4, 2024, to Nov 3, 2027.

In August, Raduan, who is also the president of the National Professors Council (MPN), was charged with seven counts of CBT involving RM271,000 from the council’s funds, while a CEO of an MPN-linked firm was accused of colluding with him.

The 64-year-old was accused of using his two official capacities to channel the funds to MPN Global Reach Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Professor Datuk Dr Kefli Mahbol. — Bernama