Mat Sabu and Chin Tong call for declassification of three documents linked to LCS scandal
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 8 — Former defence minister Mohamad Sabu and his former deputy Liew Chin Tong today demanded the declassification of three documents as part of the solution for the multibillion ringgit littoral combat ships (LCS) scandal.
The documents that the pair called to be declassified in a joint statement are: the Tan Sri Ambrin Buang committee report titled “Special Investigation Committee on Public Governance, Procurement and Finance (JKSTUPKK) Report in Connection with the Procurement of Six Second Generation Patrol Vessels (SGPV), LCS Capacity, Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN), Malaysian Ministry of Defence (Mindef)”; Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd's forensic report on the LCS commissioned in 2019; and the 10 letters written by the former Commander of the RMN Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar.
“To find solutions and the way forward, we urge Minister of Defence Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and the government of Malaysia to decide at the Cabinet meeting this Wednesday to declassify the following documents for the nation to understand the problem.
“Without the following documents being declassified, many questions will remain unanswered,” said the Amanah president and the Johor DAP chairman.
The first report contains detailed financial information that is not fully disclosed in the report by the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), they said.
The BNS forensic report, which was conducted by audit firm Alliance IFA, was deemed crucial as it contains details of “exactly who was culpable at the operational alliance”.
Earlier today, the Hishammuddin told the Dewan Negara that the first of six littoral combat ships (LCS) purchased from Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNS) should be ready no later than two years from now.
Last week, he revealed that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was investigating the matter.
The LCS project is the largest procurement in the history of Mindef with a total cost of RM9 billion.
