Email sent to Lim Kit Siang
From: asiseesit
Sent: Monday, 27 Oct, 2008 12:14 AM
To: limkitsiangblog@gmail.com
Malaysian Insider today reported that the government have decided to ditch the eurocopter deal in view of the global economic storm. While it only quoted sources of this latest development, the government have yet made any official announcement.
Still, in view of the whole process that had occured from this tender, many have questioned the irregularities of the deal and letter of intent at a time when portfolio of the two leaders changed and the manner the whole exercise was conducted.
the question is, or should i emphasized it, PAC should continue with it's investigation irrespective of whether the deal is call off or not. It should not be the reason to cease the enquiry as i view the latest development as a separate issue altogether.
the objective of PAC's investigation should be to identify, it there exist, irregularities or oversights, to ensure the integrity of RMAF is intact. should such faults are discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise since such purchases involved a huge sum of the country's funds.
even as a layman like myself, but being in the construction industry and had gone thru many bonafide tendering process, had detected discrepancies in the previous statement by the secretary general's affirming that all rules and regulations are followed in the acquisition.
On or off, PAC inquiry into RM2.3b 12 EC725 helicopter deal must go on
By Lim Kit Siang DAP Parliamentary Leader
Posted: http://blog.limkitsiang.com/ October 27th 2008
Yesterday, The Malaysian Insider reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had decided over the weekend to “cut out the EC725 military helicopter contract” when the government “reviewed its expenses in light of falling revenues from crude oil and palm oil and slowing economic growth for the next few years”.
Today’s Bernama carried a more qualified report, “Govt yet to discuss helicopter purchase”, quoting a government source as saying that “In the wake of the global economic crisis, the government will have to discuss further whether to go ahead with the purchase of new helicopters to replace the ageing Nuris in the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF)”.
The government source said the discussion will need the involvement of the Defence Ministry and the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who is the Defence Minister.The source said the procurement of the new helicopters was only at the letter of intent stage (LOI) and no letter of award (LOA) had been made to any party.
Regardless of whether the RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 Eurocopter deal is on or off, the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) inquiry into the deal, fixed for two days on Wednesday and Thursday, must be held as scheduled as larger issues are involved concerning national integrity and proper billion-ringgit defence procurement process.
Even if the helicopter deal is cancelled, PAC is duty-bound to investigate into the highly dubious and controversial procurement process as it runs counter to all principles of accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance.
The objective of the PAC investigation should be to identify, if there exist, irregularities or oversights, to ensure the integrity of the Defence Ministry and RMAF are intact, and should such faults are discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise since such purchases involved a huge sum of the country’s funds.
Parliament and the nation are entitled to a searching and no-holds-barred PAC inquiry to produce a report to be tabled by the end of November which can answer many controversial questions, including:
1. The bid price from Eurocopter, including delivery charges amounts to Euro 233,345,390, which is around RM1.1 billion. Why has total price ballooned becoming RM2.3 billion? Has the other half RM1.2 billion allocated to middleman for maintenance service over the next 40 years?
2. Why is Malaysia paying over twice the price for the EC 725 helicopters as compared to Brazil, which is getting 50 EC725 helicopters at RM84 million per aircraft as compared to the RM193 million price tag for the RM2.3 billion Eurocopter deal? Shouldn’t Malaysia be getting over 100 EC725 helicopters at the Brazilian price instead of just 12?
Following the nation-wide furore over the helicopter deal, the PAC has itself come under the spotlight as to its performance, efficacy and usefulness.
As one comment queried on my blog:
What happened to RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal issue even bigger than the RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 helicopter deal?
The last time PAC reported they were dissatisfied with the outcome of investigations. I thought there independent auditors (was it Price WaterHouse??) appointed at beginning this year to audit. What is the outcome?
What about PAC’s earlier investigation into Middle Ring Road II?
I understand PAC will besides EC725 helicopter deal also investigate the other mega deals highlighted by Opposition in the 2009 budget debate - Maybank purchase of Bank International Indonesia (BII) and RM11.3 billion high-speed broadband contract to TM Bhd? Has PAC the resources and expertise to do all these? Wouldn’t investigation of BII’s acquisition be closing the barn door after horses have bolted?
On record has PAC done anything to prevent consummation of scandal tainted mega deals or has its investigations so far brought any one especially the big wigs to account?
The PAC Chairman Datuk Azmi Khalid should give a response to this query.
DAP insists PAC continue probing Eurocopter deal
By Shannon Teoh
Reported http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/ October 27 2008
PETALING JAYA, Oct 27 - Despite the government shelving the Eurocopter deal, DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang today insisted that the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) should continue investigating the proposed RM2.3 billion defence contract for procurement irregularities.
The Malaysian Insider reported yesterday that Malaysia will cancel buying 12 Eurocopter EC725 military helicopters due to the bleak world economic outlook. The PAC announced last week it will meet over the deal when parliament reconvenes this Wednesday.
"Even if the helicopter deal is cancelled, PAC is duty-bound to investigate into the highly dubious and controversial procurement process as it runs counter to all principles of accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance," said Lim, who is DAP parliamentary leader, in a statement today.
The veteran opposition leader said the PAC investigations should be "to identify, if there exist, irregularities or oversights and should such faults be discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise".
National news agency Bernama reported yesterday evening that "in the wake of the global economic crisis, the government will have to discuss further whether to go ahead with the purchase of new helicopters to replace the ageing Nuris in the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF)".
The Defence Ministry had earlier announced it would sign a letter of intent for the dozen military helicopters, to be used for combat and also search and rescue missions apart from troop transport, to replace the Nuris that have been in service since 1968. The RMAF has about 30 Nuris left after suffering 18 crashes that killed 95 servicemen since the aircraft entered service.
Lim said any eventual PAC report should provide answers to several questions, including the reasons for the bid price ballooning from 233,345,390 euros or RM1.1 billion to RM2.3 billion.
"Has the other half, RM1.2 billion, allocated to middlemen for maintenance service over the next 40 years?" he asked.
He also questioned the rationale for Malaysia paying over twice the price for the EC725 helicopters as compared to Brazil, which is reportedly getting 50 EC725 helicopters at RM84 million per aircraft compared to the RM193 million price tag for the RM2.3 billion Eurocopter deal.
"Shouldn't Malaysia be getting over 100 EC725 helicopters at the Brazilian price instead of just 12?"
The Ipoh Timur MP also added that the Eurocopter inquiry was a test of the PAC's "performance, efficacy and usefulness."
"On record, has PAC done anything to prevent consummation of scandal tainted mega-deals or has its investigations so far brought anyone especially the big-wigs to account?"
He cited the investigations into the RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone and the Middle Ring Road II as examples and called on PAC chairman Datuk Azmi Khalid to give an adeqaute response to the status of these inquiries.
Confirmed - Eurocopter deal off for now
By Shannon Teoh
Reported http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/ October 28 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 - The Eurocopter deal has been deferred until the economy improves, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi said today, confirming a Malaysian Insider report.
At a press conference at the Ministry of Defence, he said that this was to reallocate funds to projects which could benefit the people directly in the current financial crisis.
"At the moment we have decided not to purchase the helicopters so as to allocate funds for other projects. The savings are important due to the economy and financial crisis.
"Due to the financial crisis, we need money. We cannot just be borrowing every time we need money. The best thing to do now is reallocate our budget," Abdullah said.
He also revealed that the decision was made in an Economic Council exco meeting on Oct 13, which recommended that certain projects be shelved in favour of those that had a high "trickle-down multiplier effect" on the economy.
Clarifying that the deal is worth RM1.67 billion and not RM2.3 billion as reported, he said the Public Accounts Committee would continue its scrutiny of the deal.
Abdullah, however, said he believed there were no irregularities in the procurement procedure and that the scrutiny would be good.
"It will let us know what the procedures are and explain why the price is so high and comments with regards to the tender," he said, adding that the price was high due to the specifications involved.
By stating that the helicopters were capable of combat, search and rescue as well as troop lifting, Abdullah explained that the 12 Cougar EC725s cost more than those being acquired by Brazil because "they have been upgraded to that level. If it is only for transport, it will cost much less."
It had been revealed that Brazil were purchasing 50 Cougars at RM84 million each whereas Malaysia would be buying its units for RM139 million each.
Eventually, the Royal Malaysian Air Force would need to purchase new helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of 28 Nuris, Abdullah added.
"It does not mean we don't want to buy. The Nuri is old and has been involved in many fatal accidents.
"We have to buy new helicopters no later than 2011. If we can, we want to buy earlier," he said, explaining also that "it is not like buying a car" and would take a three-year period for the aircrafts to be delivered.
He, however, did not rule out a new tender process in the future.
"This is a matter for our officials to decide. Whether we want to do it is our decision," he said.
Abdullah added that various ministries have been instructed to reduce expenditure and this may cause some other projects to be shelved.
From: asiseesit
Sent: Monday, 27 Oct, 2008 12:14 AM
To: limkitsiangblog@gmail.com
Malaysian Insider today reported that the government have decided to ditch the eurocopter deal in view of the global economic storm. While it only quoted sources of this latest development, the government have yet made any official announcement.
Still, in view of the whole process that had occured from this tender, many have questioned the irregularities of the deal and letter of intent at a time when portfolio of the two leaders changed and the manner the whole exercise was conducted.
the question is, or should i emphasized it, PAC should continue with it's investigation irrespective of whether the deal is call off or not. It should not be the reason to cease the enquiry as i view the latest development as a separate issue altogether.
the objective of PAC's investigation should be to identify, it there exist, irregularities or oversights, to ensure the integrity of RMAF is intact. should such faults are discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise since such purchases involved a huge sum of the country's funds.
even as a layman like myself, but being in the construction industry and had gone thru many bonafide tendering process, had detected discrepancies in the previous statement by the secretary general's affirming that all rules and regulations are followed in the acquisition.
On or off, PAC inquiry into RM2.3b 12 EC725 helicopter deal must go on
By Lim Kit Siang DAP Parliamentary Leader
Posted: http://blog.limkitsiang.com/ October 27th 2008
Yesterday, The Malaysian Insider reported that Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak had decided over the weekend to “cut out the EC725 military helicopter contract” when the government “reviewed its expenses in light of falling revenues from crude oil and palm oil and slowing economic growth for the next few years”.
Today’s Bernama carried a more qualified report, “Govt yet to discuss helicopter purchase”, quoting a government source as saying that “In the wake of the global economic crisis, the government will have to discuss further whether to go ahead with the purchase of new helicopters to replace the ageing Nuris in the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF)”.
The government source said the discussion will need the involvement of the Defence Ministry and the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who is the Defence Minister.The source said the procurement of the new helicopters was only at the letter of intent stage (LOI) and no letter of award (LOA) had been made to any party.
Regardless of whether the RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 Eurocopter deal is on or off, the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) inquiry into the deal, fixed for two days on Wednesday and Thursday, must be held as scheduled as larger issues are involved concerning national integrity and proper billion-ringgit defence procurement process.
Even if the helicopter deal is cancelled, PAC is duty-bound to investigate into the highly dubious and controversial procurement process as it runs counter to all principles of accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance.
The objective of the PAC investigation should be to identify, if there exist, irregularities or oversights, to ensure the integrity of the Defence Ministry and RMAF are intact, and should such faults are discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise since such purchases involved a huge sum of the country’s funds.
Parliament and the nation are entitled to a searching and no-holds-barred PAC inquiry to produce a report to be tabled by the end of November which can answer many controversial questions, including:
1. The bid price from Eurocopter, including delivery charges amounts to Euro 233,345,390, which is around RM1.1 billion. Why has total price ballooned becoming RM2.3 billion? Has the other half RM1.2 billion allocated to middleman for maintenance service over the next 40 years?
2. Why is Malaysia paying over twice the price for the EC 725 helicopters as compared to Brazil, which is getting 50 EC725 helicopters at RM84 million per aircraft as compared to the RM193 million price tag for the RM2.3 billion Eurocopter deal? Shouldn’t Malaysia be getting over 100 EC725 helicopters at the Brazilian price instead of just 12?
Following the nation-wide furore over the helicopter deal, the PAC has itself come under the spotlight as to its performance, efficacy and usefulness.
As one comment queried on my blog:
What happened to RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal issue even bigger than the RM2.3 billion 12 Cougar EC725 helicopter deal?
The last time PAC reported they were dissatisfied with the outcome of investigations. I thought there independent auditors (was it Price WaterHouse??) appointed at beginning this year to audit. What is the outcome?
What about PAC’s earlier investigation into Middle Ring Road II?
I understand PAC will besides EC725 helicopter deal also investigate the other mega deals highlighted by Opposition in the 2009 budget debate - Maybank purchase of Bank International Indonesia (BII) and RM11.3 billion high-speed broadband contract to TM Bhd? Has PAC the resources and expertise to do all these? Wouldn’t investigation of BII’s acquisition be closing the barn door after horses have bolted?
On record has PAC done anything to prevent consummation of scandal tainted mega deals or has its investigations so far brought any one especially the big wigs to account?
The PAC Chairman Datuk Azmi Khalid should give a response to this query.
DAP insists PAC continue probing Eurocopter deal
By Shannon Teoh
Reported http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/ October 27 2008
PETALING JAYA, Oct 27 - Despite the government shelving the Eurocopter deal, DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang today insisted that the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) should continue investigating the proposed RM2.3 billion defence contract for procurement irregularities.
The Malaysian Insider reported yesterday that Malaysia will cancel buying 12 Eurocopter EC725 military helicopters due to the bleak world economic outlook. The PAC announced last week it will meet over the deal when parliament reconvenes this Wednesday.
"Even if the helicopter deal is cancelled, PAC is duty-bound to investigate into the highly dubious and controversial procurement process as it runs counter to all principles of accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance," said Lim, who is DAP parliamentary leader, in a statement today.
The veteran opposition leader said the PAC investigations should be "to identify, if there exist, irregularities or oversights and should such faults be discovered, to recommend the adherence of standard procedures or benchmarking for future tender exercise".
National news agency Bernama reported yesterday evening that "in the wake of the global economic crisis, the government will have to discuss further whether to go ahead with the purchase of new helicopters to replace the ageing Nuris in the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF)".
The Defence Ministry had earlier announced it would sign a letter of intent for the dozen military helicopters, to be used for combat and also search and rescue missions apart from troop transport, to replace the Nuris that have been in service since 1968. The RMAF has about 30 Nuris left after suffering 18 crashes that killed 95 servicemen since the aircraft entered service.
Lim said any eventual PAC report should provide answers to several questions, including the reasons for the bid price ballooning from 233,345,390 euros or RM1.1 billion to RM2.3 billion.
"Has the other half, RM1.2 billion, allocated to middlemen for maintenance service over the next 40 years?" he asked.
He also questioned the rationale for Malaysia paying over twice the price for the EC725 helicopters as compared to Brazil, which is reportedly getting 50 EC725 helicopters at RM84 million per aircraft compared to the RM193 million price tag for the RM2.3 billion Eurocopter deal.
"Shouldn't Malaysia be getting over 100 EC725 helicopters at the Brazilian price instead of just 12?"
The Ipoh Timur MP also added that the Eurocopter inquiry was a test of the PAC's "performance, efficacy and usefulness."
"On record, has PAC done anything to prevent consummation of scandal tainted mega-deals or has its investigations so far brought anyone especially the big-wigs to account?"
He cited the investigations into the RM4.6 billion Port Klang Free Zone and the Middle Ring Road II as examples and called on PAC chairman Datuk Azmi Khalid to give an adeqaute response to the status of these inquiries.
Confirmed - Eurocopter deal off for now
By Shannon Teoh
Reported http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/ October 28 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 - The Eurocopter deal has been deferred until the economy improves, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi said today, confirming a Malaysian Insider report.
At a press conference at the Ministry of Defence, he said that this was to reallocate funds to projects which could benefit the people directly in the current financial crisis.
"At the moment we have decided not to purchase the helicopters so as to allocate funds for other projects. The savings are important due to the economy and financial crisis.
"Due to the financial crisis, we need money. We cannot just be borrowing every time we need money. The best thing to do now is reallocate our budget," Abdullah said.
He also revealed that the decision was made in an Economic Council exco meeting on Oct 13, which recommended that certain projects be shelved in favour of those that had a high "trickle-down multiplier effect" on the economy.
Clarifying that the deal is worth RM1.67 billion and not RM2.3 billion as reported, he said the Public Accounts Committee would continue its scrutiny of the deal.
Abdullah, however, said he believed there were no irregularities in the procurement procedure and that the scrutiny would be good.
"It will let us know what the procedures are and explain why the price is so high and comments with regards to the tender," he said, adding that the price was high due to the specifications involved.
By stating that the helicopters were capable of combat, search and rescue as well as troop lifting, Abdullah explained that the 12 Cougar EC725s cost more than those being acquired by Brazil because "they have been upgraded to that level. If it is only for transport, it will cost much less."
It had been revealed that Brazil were purchasing 50 Cougars at RM84 million each whereas Malaysia would be buying its units for RM139 million each.
Eventually, the Royal Malaysian Air Force would need to purchase new helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of 28 Nuris, Abdullah added.
"It does not mean we don't want to buy. The Nuri is old and has been involved in many fatal accidents.
"We have to buy new helicopters no later than 2011. If we can, we want to buy earlier," he said, explaining also that "it is not like buying a car" and would take a three-year period for the aircrafts to be delivered.
He, however, did not rule out a new tender process in the future.
"This is a matter for our officials to decide. Whether we want to do it is our decision," he said.
Abdullah added that various ministries have been instructed to reduce expenditure and this may cause some other projects to be shelved.
Posted: http://blog.limkitsiang.com/
Thursday October 30th 2008
Eurocopter deal - shameful episode in Parliament
Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Wira Abu Seman Yusof was literally grilled in Parliament for over two hours over the billion-ringgit 12 Cougar EC725 Europter helicopters deal as he was totally at sea and unable to answer the most elementary of questions, such as
(i) Why three sets of different figures for the 12 Cougar helicopter deal - RM1.1 billion given by Defence Ministry Secretary-General Datuk Abu Bakar Abdullah; RM1.67 billion given by the Prime Minister-cum-Defence Minister; and RM1.604 billion stated by Abu Seman Yusof in Parliament today;
(ii) Why no physical evaluation or test flights for the short-listed helicopters; or as I said in Parlaiment, getting Malaysia into the Guinness Book of Records as probably the only government in the world to order sophisticated and expensive aircrafts without any test flight although such physical evaluation for the short-listed tenderers was one of the conditions specified in the tender document.
Abu Seman was dumbstruck when asked both questions and was unable to give any sensible reply. It was a most shameful episode in Parliament.
It has to be left to the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister to try to immediately repair the damage created by the deputy Defence Minister by answering these two questions outside Parliament, as in the following report:
The Malaysian Insider
Thursday October 30 2008
PM admits price mistake, Najib says RMAF pilots tested Eurocopters at Lima
By Debra Chong
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30 - Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi admitted he had made an error when he spoke of the package price of the much-disputed Eurocopter helicopter deal and which had caused an uproar among Opposition lawmakers in Parliament.
Abdullah who is also the Defence Minister said he was informed by officials in the Defence Ministry this morning on his slip.
The correct figure is RM1.604 billion, but he had thought it was RM1.67 billion and had rounded it up to RM1.7 billion.
“I apologise for my mistake,” he said.
Asked to respond to the opposition’s calls for him to explain the price discrepancy inside the Dewan Rakyat, Abdullah said it was unnecessary as he had already announced that the deal would be deferred to a later date.
He pointed out that the price would be renegotiated again as and when the government finally decides to purchase the helicopters.
“This is academic,” he said.
Speaking at the same press conference, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak also denied claims that no physical evaluation was conducted on Eurocopter aircraft.
Najib who until last month held the Minister of Defence portfolio emphasised that the Eurocopter EC725 Cougar was not a new or ‘experimental’ aircraft. He noted that many countries had tested it out, including in combat in Afghanistan.
He said that Royal Malaysian Air Force pilots had tested it in local flight at the Langkawi International Marine Aerospace (Lima) show previously.
Asked to comment on calls by the Opposition for an independent expert panel to evaluate the procurement process, Najib said: “They are making too much a big deal out of it.”
www.malaysiakini.com
Eurocopter scandal: No inspection done on choppers
Syed Jaymal Zahiid October 30, 2008
Defence Deputy Minister Abu Seman Yusop received a beating from Pakatan Rakyat MPs today when he openly admitted that the multi-billion ringgit military helicopters did not undergo any physical inspection.
Abu Seman, in his Budget 2009 winding-up speech, said the ministry’s technical committee had decided to buy 12 units of the Eurocopter Cougar EC 725 helicopters based on documents alone.
He also took pains to explain that the purchase of the helicopters had cost the government RM1.6 billion, instead of the RM1.1 billion figure given by the ministry’s secretary-general Abu Bakar Abdullah in a press statement last week.
His revelation sparked an uproar in the House and prompted several Pakatan Rakyat MPs, led by Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim, to grill him.
“How is it that a government procurement as big as this did not undergo any physical inspection? I have eight years of experience as finance minister and we have never make procurements without first inspecting (the items),” thundered Anwar.
M Manogaran (DAP-Teluk Intan) took a swipe at the deputy minister, saying that “even when you purchase something as small as a Perodua Kancil, you would want to inspect it first, what more when it is helicopters worth RM1.6 billion.”
Anwar said various aspects have to be taken into consideration like the safety of the pilots should there be any defects in the helicopters and it was absurd of the government not to make such deliberations when procuring the helicopters.
He demanded answers as to why conflicting figures have been cited on the cost of the helicopters.
Abu Seman then replied that it was a mistake on his part as he had overlooked the fact that the services charge and ‘offset package’ like supplementary military hardware had added RM500 million to the original RM1.1 billion to make it RM1.6 billion.
Set up Royal Commission
At a press conference later, Anwar said he could not accept the reasons given by Abu Seman although he believes that the deputy minister was only “reading the text provided to him by his superior” and was not involved in the matter.
“This is a shocking revelation by the deputy minister. A procurement this big without a physical inspection being done is swindling the people’s money par excellence.
“How can you allocate RM1.6 billion for something that you have never even seen or (when you don’t) know if it works or not.”
He said he could “vouch on behalf of the Malaysian army that they would definitely want to inspect the helicopters before purchasing it.”
Asked what he thought of all this, Anwar reiterated his demand for the government to set up a royal commission to probe the matter.
Earlier today, a decision on Anwar’s emergency motion to set up a royal commission to probe not just into the Eurocopter scandal but two other ‘mega-projects’ was deferred to Monday by the speaker.
A RM11.31 billion high-speed broadband project and the RM4.26 billion purchase of the Bank Internasional Indonesia by Maybank were the other projects Anwar had wanted to government to probe.
PAC clears Eurocopter deal, but decision not unanimous
By Debra Chong
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 - After several meetings stretched out over the past one week, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has cleared the federal government of scandal into the RM1.6 billion Eurocopter military deal.
However, the decision was not unanimous as some of its members felt that officials from the Defence Ministry had failed to address several key questions, notably what made the Eurocopter EC725 Cougar the preferred choice to replace the Royal Malaysian Air Force's 42-year-old fleet of Nuri helicopters.
Attempts to obtain detailed explanations from the ministry's top officials who were present at today's inquiry session were thwarted.
The questions had been submitted beforehand, but apparently the military top brass had chosen to ignore the queries or had responded merely that they were confidential military information and could not as such be disclosed.
Seven helicopter manufacturers had made a bid for the RMAF tender, which was to equip the Defence Ministry with air craft for search-and rescue missions primarily, and which could later on be used for military combat missions.
Three made it to the final list but the Defence Ministry selected the Eurocopter which cost RM1.604 billion for 12 units. The other two packages cost RM1.262 billion and RM2.442 billion respectively.
The Malaysian Insider understands that while the Defence Ministry had abided by the regulations in the tender procedure, it had not followed the standard norms in calling up each of the helicopter manufacturers to clarify the details of their tender.
"Our concern is that this deal, to put it in a way, is made for Eurocopter. None of the tenderers were called in for tender clarification of the tender document during the entire tender process," noted a horrified PAC member.
"It does not answer the big question," he added, referring to the advantages Eurocopter possessed over the other bidders.
Chairman Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid however concluded today that he was satisfied that there had been no misappropriation of funds into the federal government's procurement in the Eurocopter deal.
"PAC's responsibility is to see if procedure was followed. In the evaluation process, we found that the procedure has been followed," Azmi told reporters after wrapping up the meeting with officials from theDefence and Finance Ministries in Parliament this evening.
He added that the only aspect of the deal found to be dissatisfactory was the fact that no physical examination or flight test had been carried out specifically for this tender.
Queried if PAC found elements of financial misappropriation due to the glaring difference in the Eurocopter package price for Malaysia and Brazil, Azmi said: "The PAC does not determine what is the right price.'
He explained that PAC was not in a position to say which was the correct price or better deal as the requirements for military procurements differed from country to country.
Asked if PAC had inquired the reasons behind the hasty decision to sign the deal a mere two days before Datuk Seri Najib Razak who was the Defence Minister swapped portfolios with Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, Azmi replied that the committee had not asked those questions nor did it address the issue.
When pressed about the issue of commissions from the helicopter deal, Azmi said that it was not the committee's responsibility to inquire about that aspect. But he smiled and hinted that in any business, people would try to make good deals.
Asked if PAC considered its inquiry into the Eurocopter case closed, Azmi hesitated before saying that PAC would continue to "monitor" its development "but for how far, we cannot say".
Azmi added that the PAC proposed for the Defence Ministry to conduct a proper physical evaluation on the air craft before the delivery if they decided to go ahead with the procurement, which is now deferred.
He also submitted that PAC would recommend that an independent review panel be set up to scrutinise all extravagant government purchases in the future. However, he said he left it to the government to determine the amount it would consider to be "extravagant".
The latter recommendation was met with disdain by some of Azmi's colleagues. They observed that the PAC was there to fulfil that role.
By Debra Chong
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 - After several meetings stretched out over the past one week, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has cleared the federal government of scandal into the RM1.6 billion Eurocopter military deal.
However, the decision was not unanimous as some of its members felt that officials from the Defence Ministry had failed to address several key questions, notably what made the Eurocopter EC725 Cougar the preferred choice to replace the Royal Malaysian Air Force's 42-year-old fleet of Nuri helicopters.
Attempts to obtain detailed explanations from the ministry's top officials who were present at today's inquiry session were thwarted.
The questions had been submitted beforehand, but apparently the military top brass had chosen to ignore the queries or had responded merely that they were confidential military information and could not as such be disclosed.
Seven helicopter manufacturers had made a bid for the RMAF tender, which was to equip the Defence Ministry with air craft for search-and rescue missions primarily, and which could later on be used for military combat missions.
Three made it to the final list but the Defence Ministry selected the Eurocopter which cost RM1.604 billion for 12 units. The other two packages cost RM1.262 billion and RM2.442 billion respectively.
The Malaysian Insider understands that while the Defence Ministry had abided by the regulations in the tender procedure, it had not followed the standard norms in calling up each of the helicopter manufacturers to clarify the details of their tender.
"Our concern is that this deal, to put it in a way, is made for Eurocopter. None of the tenderers were called in for tender clarification of the tender document during the entire tender process," noted a horrified PAC member.
"It does not answer the big question," he added, referring to the advantages Eurocopter possessed over the other bidders.
Chairman Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid however concluded today that he was satisfied that there had been no misappropriation of funds into the federal government's procurement in the Eurocopter deal.
"PAC's responsibility is to see if procedure was followed. In the evaluation process, we found that the procedure has been followed," Azmi told reporters after wrapping up the meeting with officials from theDefence and Finance Ministries in Parliament this evening.
He added that the only aspect of the deal found to be dissatisfactory was the fact that no physical examination or flight test had been carried out specifically for this tender.
Queried if PAC found elements of financial misappropriation due to the glaring difference in the Eurocopter package price for Malaysia and Brazil, Azmi said: "The PAC does not determine what is the right price.'
He explained that PAC was not in a position to say which was the correct price or better deal as the requirements for military procurements differed from country to country.
Asked if PAC had inquired the reasons behind the hasty decision to sign the deal a mere two days before Datuk Seri Najib Razak who was the Defence Minister swapped portfolios with Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi, Azmi replied that the committee had not asked those questions nor did it address the issue.
When pressed about the issue of commissions from the helicopter deal, Azmi said that it was not the committee's responsibility to inquire about that aspect. But he smiled and hinted that in any business, people would try to make good deals.
Asked if PAC considered its inquiry into the Eurocopter case closed, Azmi hesitated before saying that PAC would continue to "monitor" its development "but for how far, we cannot say".
Azmi added that the PAC proposed for the Defence Ministry to conduct a proper physical evaluation on the air craft before the delivery if they decided to go ahead with the procurement, which is now deferred.
He also submitted that PAC would recommend that an independent review panel be set up to scrutinise all extravagant government purchases in the future. However, he said he left it to the government to determine the amount it would consider to be "extravagant".
The latter recommendation was met with disdain by some of Azmi's colleagues. They observed that the PAC was there to fulfil that role.
so you are the culprit
ReplyDeleteCulprit? Hardly. Ordinary people like us can only do this much. Doing things that matters instead of just going into blogs and making senseless comments.
ReplyDeleteBut thanks for your comment. I feel a write up coming on here. Do drop by often to check.