While some government agencies have sung praises of reforms and action against corruption during Najib Abdul Razak’s administration, the National Audit Department is unable to join the chorus.
"We have been independent for more than 50 years, and yet we are struggling with building schools and hospitals... why? There must be something wrong," Auditor-General Ambrin Buang (right)said today in forthright fashion.
He was among speakers at a panel discussion on ‘Public Sector Accountability and Transparency’ at the Corporate Governance Symposium 2013 in Kuala Lumpur today.
Ambrin related his experiences and apparent frustration in having to deal with problems of "extravagance, wastage and abuses" year in and year out in the public service.
"Government officers don't seem to be able to learn from mistakes," he said, pointing out that the recurrent problems are reflected in the annual audit report.
He further raised the issue of directly negotiated contracts for projects which he believes should be done via a tender process.
The problems with government procurement are more widespread then reported, he said, as his office only audits a portion of projects and agencies each year.
'Forget' what is in contracts
He further said that government officers seem incompetent as project managers because they "forget" what is in the contract, therefore allowing contractors to 'cheat' them.
They fail to conduct proper site inspections, which has encouraged contractors to "cut corners" and deliver shoddy work and mostly long after the project deadline has lapsed, he said.
Ambrin bemoaned the lack of expertise in government officers in charge of procurement to negotiate with contractors and manage projects, which has caused the government and the people to be shortchanged.
"It could be that the officers lack the skills ... or quite simply, they are corrupt," he said.
Many government agencies and subsidiary bodies lack transparency and accountability, as well as good corporate governance in their administration, he said.
The crux of this lies in the composition of the board - it should be diverse and filled with experts in the respective fields of business, not with the minimum two members as mandated by law, he pointed out.
Even then, these positions are filled by members of the parent organisation, so much so there is "no check and balance".
Ambrin went on to say that many directors on the board of problematic entities are ‘golden share’ representatives of the government.
"We have been independent for more than 50 years, and yet we are struggling with building schools and hospitals... why? There must be something wrong," Auditor-General Ambrin Buang (right)said today in forthright fashion.He was among speakers at a panel discussion on ‘Public Sector Accountability and Transparency’ at the Corporate Governance Symposium 2013 in Kuala Lumpur today.
Ambrin related his experiences and apparent frustration in having to deal with problems of "extravagance, wastage and abuses" year in and year out in the public service.
"Government officers don't seem to be able to learn from mistakes," he said, pointing out that the recurrent problems are reflected in the annual audit report.
He further raised the issue of directly negotiated contracts for projects which he believes should be done via a tender process.
The problems with government procurement are more widespread then reported, he said, as his office only audits a portion of projects and agencies each year.
'Forget' what is in contracts
He further said that government officers seem incompetent as project managers because they "forget" what is in the contract, therefore allowing contractors to 'cheat' them.
They fail to conduct proper site inspections, which has encouraged contractors to "cut corners" and deliver shoddy work and mostly long after the project deadline has lapsed, he said.Ambrin bemoaned the lack of expertise in government officers in charge of procurement to negotiate with contractors and manage projects, which has caused the government and the people to be shortchanged.
"It could be that the officers lack the skills ... or quite simply, they are corrupt," he said.
Many government agencies and subsidiary bodies lack transparency and accountability, as well as good corporate governance in their administration, he said.
The crux of this lies in the composition of the board - it should be diverse and filled with experts in the respective fields of business, not with the minimum two members as mandated by law, he pointed out.
Even then, these positions are filled by members of the parent organisation, so much so there is "no check and balance".
Ambrin went on to say that many directors on the board of problematic entities are ‘golden share’ representatives of the government.
Most then claim ignorance when something goes wrong because they lack acumen in the business of the company in which they are placed.
"I don't care if you want to put politicians there. But if you are dealing in real estate, make sure they know about the business so that they can at least give advice ...
"I don't care if you want to put politicians there. But if you are dealing in real estate, make sure they know about the business so that they can at least give advice ...
"Do you want a repeat of PKFZ? A repeat of NFC?" he asked acidly, referring to major scandals involving public funds.
Improvements noted
However, he also noted that the government is slowly starting to introduce measures that could ease such concerns.
These are centred on the practice of value-management where the use of third-party valuers is giving the government more bang for the buck.
He had praise for those government agencies and departments that have improved on their financial reporting practices.
More of them are getting high marks on this front each year, having overcome problems with non-reporting or shoddy preparation of financial documentation in the past.
D Ravindran (left), the corruption NKRA director in Pemandu, in the Prime Minister's Department, expounded Najib’s virtues in fighting graft.
He said Najib is the only world leader to have admitted that there was corruption in his house and then worked to scrub it clean.
Improvements noted
However, he also noted that the government is slowly starting to introduce measures that could ease such concerns.
These are centred on the practice of value-management where the use of third-party valuers is giving the government more bang for the buck.
He had praise for those government agencies and departments that have improved on their financial reporting practices.
More of them are getting high marks on this front each year, having overcome problems with non-reporting or shoddy preparation of financial documentation in the past.
D Ravindran (left), the corruption NKRA director in Pemandu, in the Prime Minister's Department, expounded Najib’s virtues in fighting graft.He said Najib is the only world leader to have admitted that there was corruption in his house and then worked to scrub it clean.
Ravindran said eradicating corruption will take time and effor as it is a deep seated problem.
In this regard, he pointed a finger at society as contributing to such practices and therefore needing to contribute to solutions.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission investigation director Mustafar Ali spoke on the composition and functions of the agency, saying it is more independent now and doing a lot to act without fear or favour.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission investigation director Mustafar Ali spoke on the composition and functions of the agency, saying it is more independent now and doing a lot to act without fear or favour.
He argued that the proof of the pudding that the MACC is not a "tool of the government" and does not practice selective prosecution is that - in charging 15 politicians for corruption - 13 are from the BN and only two from its rivals.
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