PETALING JAYA: Defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein should explain why he has reduced the number of littoral combat ships (LCS) to be completed with no additional government funds from two to one, says DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang.
Hishammuddin said yesterday the ongoing construction of the first LCS (LCS 1), which was to have been delivered to the navy in 2019, will not involve new allocations from the government.
However, Lim noted that when Hishammuddin appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Jan 25, he said Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNS) would have to deliver two LCS without any additional cost to the government.
“Hishammuddin should explain why the defence ministry has reduced from two LCS to one LCS which must be completed and delivered by the contractor with no additional government funds,” he said in a statement.
In his testimony before the PAC, Hishammuddin had said that if the government wanted to proceed with the project, “we cannot put all the money upfront if Boustead doesn’t commit to being able to deliver at least two ships”.
In the Hansard sighted by FMT, he said that completing the first two LCS “will not affect upfront payment” as they are “still under the contractual amount”.
At an event at the defence ministry, Hishammuddin told reporters that additional allocations for BNS to complete the remaining five LCS would only be considered after completion of LCS 1 in reportedly another two years.
BNS was tasked with building six navy frigates in the troubled RM9 billion LCS project, which has come under parliamentary scrutiny by the PAC over costs and delays in construction.
The first ship was launched in 2017 and scheduled for delivery in 2019, with the rest at six-month intervals. However, none has been completed or delivered. - FMT
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