Our ships are old: navy needs LCS to protect M’sia, says eastern fleet commander  

SANDAKAN –The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) will not be able to defend the country without the littoral combat ships (LCS), said RMN eastern fleet commander vice-admiral Datuk Sabri Zali.  

RMN currently still lacks the capability, strengths, and assets to handle maritime warfare, with its current fleet of battleships being old, some of them over 40 years old and obsolete.  

He said the LCS project, currently in the spotlight for alleged irregularities and a court case, must be continued as RMN needs the assets to protect the country’s sovereignty.  

“Without these combat assets, we will not be able to do anything when there is a conflict or maritime warfare. I am being very straightforward on this; there is nothing to hide. The whole world knows our capability, so let’s admit it,” he said.  

Sabri said this at a press conference when closing the Operational Sea Training Exercise East (Ostex East) in Sandakan’s RMN complex today.  

He said several of RMN’s assets are too old to function, and that Malaysia’s navy assets are left far behind those of countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. 

“The navy is actually playing a catch-up game with obsolescence. It will not be long before we will be left behind the Philippines and Brunei.  

“I don’t need to state the reasons, we all know why (this happened) and we all know what happened in the past ten years. 

“What we are experiencing now did not happen overnight. It was accumulated. One does not need to be in the army to know this.  

“The assets that we buy are not diapers that we use and throw away. These assets have to be replaced, upgraded,” he said.  

The RM9 billion LCS scandal saw payments made for incomplete work with none of the six ships delivered to date. 

Former navy chief Tan Sri Ramli Mohd Nor, who is the former managing director of Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd, the company contracted to deliver the LCS to the government, was charged on August 16 with fraudulently approving payments amounting to a total of RM21.08 million to three different firms without the approval of BNS’ board while he helmed the company. 

Sabri said that if the navy’s assets are not upgraded, they will be obsolete after ten years.

This has made it challenging for RMN to determine its readiness for maritime warfare.  

Nevertheless, he said, RMN must strive to utilise its assets to the fullest and is undergoing a process to improve its overall competency.

The Ostex East programme Sabri closed today is the second series this year and was held from August 23 until September 1.  

It is an intra-RMN exercise conducted annually and is the main platform to test the capability of the navy and the readiness of maritime assets in the eastern fleet.  

It also showcased the presence of RMN’s assets in Malaysia’s maritime zone – 11 ships and two fast combat boats on the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea.  

Commenting on the old assets used during the Ostex East, Sabri said he was thankful RMN received support and collaboration from various parties which saw the renewal of old battleships’ engines and generators, among others.  

He said if not for the repowering programme, Ostex East would not see the 11 ships present at sea, because several of them were so aged that they were not able to move.  

“So we make them float first. Once they can float and move, then we can fight. If they cannot even float or move, how are we going to fight?” he said.  

Meanwhile, the exercise also saw the AW1329 helicopter for the first time after it was acquired on July 1.  

Sabri explained that this asset, which will be used by the Naval Special Operation Unit (Paskal) is far better than the previous aircraft such as the Super Lynx and Fennec in terms of design.  

“This helicopter can fly up to three hours and can carry more than eight passengers – Paskal personnel. It is also a force multiplier that can conduct surveillance at sea and help other ships monitor way farther than these ships could,” he said.  

He also revealed that the construction of Sandakan Naval Base (Mawilla 2) and Mawilla 4 in Sarawak are now in the process of changing ownership from the Sabah and Sarawak governments to the federal government. –The Vibes, September 1, 2022