In defending the rural and regional development ministry, Tampin MP Isam Isa says allocation 'adjustments' are normal in managing public finances.
Defending the rural and regional development ministry’s additional funds from the Treasury, Isam said allocation “adjustments” were normal in managing public finances.
He slammed DAP’s Chong Zhemin (PH-Kampar) for lodging a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) over the issue, pointing out that a Treasury official had already said the matter was resolved.
Isam said the finance ministry should list the other ministries that required similar allocation adjustments so that DAP could lodge similar MACC reports against them.
“This is no longer about transparency. It’s merely a cheap political gimmick for DAP to create negative perceptions against the rural and regional development ministry’s leadership,” he said while debating the 2027 budget in the Dewan Rakyat.
Deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is also the rural and regional development minister, previously expressed frustration over delayed payments to contractors working on the ministry’s projects, saying some were forced to shut down because of cash flow issues.
The following day, Treasury secretary-general Johan Mahmood Merican said contractors handling rural development projects faced delayed payments as most of the ministry’s allocation for rural roads this year had already been spent.
Johan said the ministry had consistently exceeded its approved allocation for rural road projects in recent years, with a cumulative total of RM2.1 billion in over-expenditure recorded from 2023 to 2025.
This led to Chong filing a report with MACC on Oct 6. - FMT
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