LCS scandal: Govt declassifies procurement, governance report

PETALING JAYA: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has received a copy of the declassified report from the Investigating Committee on Procurement, Governance and Finance (JKSTUPKK) on the littoral combat ships (LCS) project.

“PAC has been informed by the Deputy Secretary-General of the Prime Minister’s Department that the JKSTUPKK report on LCS has been declassified,” PAC chairman Wong Kah Woh said in a Facebook post on Wednesday (Aug 17).

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The report on the investigation led by former auditor general Tan Sri Ambrin Buang was declassified following PAC’s recommendation on Aug 4 and the cabinet decision on Aug 10.

“PAC will upload the report to the PAC portal for viewing,” he said.

On Aug 10, the Prime Minister announced that the government agreed to declassify documents pertaining to investigations into the LCS scandal.

However, he said, the government would seek the advice of the Attorney General and Auditor-General before doing so.

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The LCS controversy gained momentum over the past few days after the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) revealed that none of the ships have been completed so far, although five should have been delivered by this month.

It was reported that RM1.4bil worth of government funds intended for the multibillion-ringgit LCS project signed in 2014 was diverted for other purposes.

These were among the findings contained in the bipartisan committee’s 250-page report that was tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on Aug 4.