KUALA LUMPUR – Public debates on the littoral combat ships (LCS) procurement scandal continue to dominate the news as former deputy defence minister Liew Chin Tong slammed Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) CEO Datuk Ahmad Nazim Abdul Rahman for the latter’s recent statement on the matter.
In a Facebook post today, Liew said that he was “surprised” when he read the statement, claiming several discrepancies in the statement only exacerbated the situation instead of clarifying issues.
“Why was equipment bought before the designs (of the ships) were finalised? This is not like playing Lego where you can simply assemble and take apart pieces,” he said, alleging that 15% of the equipment bought in bulk has since expired.
Earlier today, Nazim said 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%.
Besides that, Liew, who is also Johor DAP chairman, had a bone to pick with Nazim’s claims that parts of the ships’ hulls are already done and can be viewed on a boat ride to Pangkor.
“The most important aspect of a ship is the design. What’s the point in having a large frame or hull without wiring, weapons, and equipment?” he lamented.
“Many other details such as where the pipes are installed and how the wires are connected need to be determined. The construction of a warship is not only based on the hull.”
However, Liew said that he was most shocked by Nazim’s explanation of how Boustead Holdings Bhd had to take over PSC-Naval Dockyard Sdn Bhd and use money from the LCS contract to pay off the latter’s debt.
Claiming that Nazim’s explanation is a sign of agreement with the proceedings, Liew condemned him for his assertions, saying: “This proves that he does not deserve to be LTAT’s CEO.
“How can he agree that it was acceptable to use funds from the LCS project to bail out PSC?”
“One day, LTAT funds will also be used to bail out other projects. The misuse of funds is a crime and cannot be dismissed,” Liew warned.
The PSC-Naval Dockyard’s primary role was to maintain the navy fleet and the Lumut naval dockyard.
But the company had a management and financial crisis in 2005, which led to a takeover by Boustead Holdings.
The company was later renamed as Boustead Naval Shipyard.
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.
Yesterday, PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli alleged that two of the project’s packages worth RM1.185 billion were awarded to subcontractor Contraves Advanced Devices Sdn Bhd by LCS-provider Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd.
Rafizi said investigations showed that these two packages were later awarded to French vessel manufacturer DCNS, but were only valued at RM397 million.
As a war of words ensued, Najib denied Rafizi’s allegations that he was involved in applying three layers of contracts for the project, leading to the government being charged three times its actual cost by the subcontractors. – The Vibes, August 10, 2022
