KUALA LUMPUR – The revelation by Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) CEO Datuk Ahmad Nazim Abdul Rahman on the littoral combat ship (LCS) scandal received brickbats after DAP lawmaker Steven Sim Chee Keong slammed the apparent mismanagement of funds.
Claiming that the decision to use funds from the LCS project to pay off the debts of other projects highlights an apparent misuse of funds and poor financial management, Sim took aim at the Barisan Nasional (BN) government for allowing such practices.
“This shows that LTAT funds and subsidiary companies have long been used by the BN government to cover one loss after another,” the DAP national organising secretary alleged in a statement today.
Yesterday, Nazim had reiterated that Boustead Holdings Bhd had to take over PSC-Naval Dockyard Sdn Bhd after the failed privatisation of navy ship construction, which saw Boustead shouldering large bank loans.
He added that the money from the LCS contract was used to pay off PSC’s debt, and it was reported in the recent Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report on the project.
Sim, who is also Bukit Mertajam MP, asserted that not only had the situation further delayed the completion of the LCS project, but also caused massive loss to LTAT and other parties involved, contributing to the failure to complete the LCS project on time.
“The BN government has caused huge losses to LTAT and Boustead while also worsening Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd’s (BNS) financial status,” he said, pointing out that BNS will not be profiting from the LCS project anyway, as detailed by the PAC report.
He said that this is a direct contradiction of an earlier assurance by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who had earlier assured that the contract was awarded to LTAT to benefit the military and veterans.
“Instead, crony companies, including foreign businesses, are the ones making an earning from the LCS project,” he lamented, mentioning a French vessel supplier which had supposedly been involved in bribery scandals involving submarines Scorpene and Agosta.
“This company received an LCS contract worth RM1.7 billion and from that amount, RM576 million has been paid to them,” Sim claimed.
Nazim had also revealed yesterday that the government paid RM6 billion to buy almost all the equipment needed to build the six LCS, as bulk orders are cheaper.
He added that a majority of expenditures were for basic and detailed design by French submarine maker Naval Group (formerly DCNS) and that the current work progress is at 55%.
Subsequently, former deputy defence minister Liew Chin Tong had claimed that several discrepancies in Nazri’s statement only exacerbated the situation instead of clarifying issues.
Last Thursday, the PAC advised the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to take legal action against those responsible for the alleged scandal, based on the findings of its report on the LCS project.
MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said last Saturday that a probe is currently in the final stages, with investigation papers being delivered to the Attorney-General’s Chambers, adding that the results of the probe will be announced soon.
According to findings, the government has spent more than RM6 billion on the procurement of six LCS vessels, which were approved in 2011 while Najib was prime minister, but a single vessel had yet to be delivered to the navy to date.
Earlier today, The Vibes published an article detailing how a company that was commissioned to implement vital defence features worth RM1.185 billion in the LCS project was formed less than two months prior to its appointment as a subcontractor. – The Vibes, August 11, 2022
