PAC should not be used for political mileage

 

Barisan Nasional (BN) Communications director Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said the PAC is a professional body, and the institution needs to maintain its credibility. - NSTP/ NUR AISYAH MAZALAN

IPOH: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) should not be used for political gain.

Barisan Nasional (BN) Communications director Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said the PAC is a professional body, and the institution needs to maintain its credibility.

"Don't use PAC for political purposes because its authoritativeness will be lost if it is politicised. PAC must look after the interests of the country and the people," he said in a Facebook posting today.

The LCS project is the largest acquisition in the Defence Ministry's history, with an overall value of RM9 billion.

The contract began in 2013 and was projected to end in 10 years.

The PAC, in its report on Aug 4, said the government had paid RM6.083 billion to Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNS), in a deal that was signed via direct negotiation, but not a single vessel had been delivered to date.

Based on the original schedule, five of the six LCS vessels should have been completed and handed over to the RMN by this month.

PAC chairman Wong Kah Woh had said the cost for the project had ballooned to RM1.4 billion, with RM400 million being spent to settle old debts from a previous patrol ship project.

On Aug 7, the RMN said the delay in the project had a negative impact on the capabilities of the Navy's combat fleet.

Two days later, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the first of the six ships would be delivered to the RMN in one or two years.

He pledged that those involved in the project, if found guilty of wrongdoing, would be brought to justice.

On Aug 10, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the government would declassify documents pertaining to investigations into the LCS scandal. - NST