SC’s AOB reprimands auditors for violation of auditing standards

KUALA LUMPUR: The Securities Commission Malaysia’s (SC) Audit Oversight Board (AOB) has publicly reprimanded Nexia SSY PLT (AF 2009) and its audit partners, namely Michelle Yong Voon Sze and Jayapalasingam Kandiah.

The regulator said Yong, as an engagement partner responsible for the audit of a public interest entity (PIE), has failed to perform sufficient audit procedures and obtain sufficient audit evidence to support the basis for the qualified opinion in the auditor’s report.

“This breach is a non-compliance with the relevant International Standards on Auditing as adopted by the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA),” the SC said in a statement yesterday.

The qualification related to certain agreements entered into by the PIE.

“Yong failed to evaluate whether the impact of these agreements was pervasive or otherwise in the financial statements of the PIE and assess its legality and enforceability,” it said.

Meanwhile, Jayapalasingam as the engagement quality control reviewer has failed to sufficiently review the selected audit documentation relating to significant judgements and significant risk areas of the engagement and the basis of the conclusions reached, particularly the basis for the qualified opinion.

With regards to Nexia, the SC added that the audit firm was reprimanded for the quality of the engagement performance and non-compliance with the relevant requirements on the International Standards of Quality Control 1 (ISQC 1) as adopted by the MIA, specifically on file assembly and audit documentation.