IGP cannot be on Putrajaya’s special committee, he should be investigated instead, says Kit Siang

The Inspector-General of Police should not be on the Chief Secretary’s special committee on the 2012 Auditor-General Report and should instead be the subject of investigation, said DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang (pic).

He questioned the rationale of including IGP Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar in the committee as he should be questioned on the loss of RM1.3 million worth of assets, including 44 guns and 29 police vehicles.

Lim pointed out that Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed had also questioned the setting up of the committee as it will duplicate the role of the PAC and because Malaysians do not have confidence in the committee made up of government officials, including the IGP.

Following the tabling of the AG's report in Parliament last week, revealing a litany of financial abuses and wrongdoings by government departments and agencies that cost taxpayers millions of ringgit, Putrajaya moved swiftly to counter the fallout by setting up a committee chaired by Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa to look into the excessive spending and weaknesses to prevent a repeat of such abuses.

Its members comprise representatives from the Public Services Department, the Attorney General's Chambers, the Finance Ministry, police and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

Nur Jazlan was quoted as saying that the public would be sceptical of the panel's impartiality as the officials are investigating their own colleagues.

Lim said it is even more important to investigate the IGP and the police after Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang denied that police had given an explanation on the missing items, as was reported in The Malaysian Insidertoday.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had earlier said the ministry had submitted a report to the AG with an explanation on the missing items but this explanation was not included in the report as it was not done on time.

"For this reason, the IGP should be hauled up before the special committee to give a full explanation on the missing assets especially after his earlier dismissive and ludicrous response that the missing guns could have fallen into the sea," Lim pointed out.

The PAC had its first meeting on October 1 - the day the AG's report was tabled in Parliament - where it identified the Inland Revenue Board, Kota Kinabalu International Airport, construction of incinerators and the Fire and Rescue Department as subjects of investigations.

Lim pointed out that the police were “'conspicuously absent” from this list.

"This is one reason why there is very little public confidence in the PAC to check corruption, waste, negligence and abuse of power as revealed by the AG's annual report, making the PAC seem toothless," he added.

Casting doubts on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's seriousness in ensuring the highest standards of integrity and accountability in public service, Lim also questioned Putrajaya on its decision to set up the special committee only after the AG's report was made public and not in July when the government received it.

Lim added it seemed like the Chief Secretary’s special committee was just a "public relations" exercise to circumvent and distract attention from the avalanche of adverse publicity following the publication of the 2012 Auditor General Report.