PAKATAN Harapan MP Teo Nie Ching has asked former prime minister Najib Razak to prove his accusation that the opposition coalition was responsible for the littoral combat ship (LCS) contract’s failure.

The DAP national publicity secretary said the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report did not name PH, yet Najib has been vocal in placing blame firmly on the opposition’s shoulders.

“Najib was the person who reacted the most to the exposure, despite not being named in the report.

“Over the past two days, Najib was trying hard to imply that the non-completion and non-delivery of LCS was due to the PH government, by twisting the clear facts exposed in the Report,” the Kulai MP said.

She posed five questions to Najib to prove his contention:

1. Did PH decide to use the Gowind design by Naval Group, against the wishes of the Royal Malaysian Navy, in 2011?

2. Did PH cause the navy to be placed in a disadvantageous position where Boustead Naval Shipyard (BNS) only agreed to 10 out of the 17 major items requested by the navy, with the balance 7 decided by BNS solely, in 2011?

3. Did PH appoint middlemen Contraves Advanced Devices and Contraves Electrodynamics, which a forensic report found had tripled the original equipment manufacturers’ (OEM) price?

4. Did PH cause the misuse of LCS Project Fund – RM400 million to pay outstanding BNS debts, RM305 million to build a centre in Putrajaya completely unrelated to the contract – and a RM700 million cost-overrun due to BNS mismanagement?

5. Did the OEM and sub-contractor stop work, and stop supply of materials and equipment due to PH coming to power in 2018?

Teo also asked why Najib, who was prime minister and finance minister when the programme was commissioned, never investigated who was responsible for handling of the contract.

The LCS programme, which began about 11 years ago, is worth RM9 billion. The contract was awarded to Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNS) to build the ships for the navy, but not a single vessel has been delivered.

However, despite the protracted delay, the government has paid RM6 billion to BNS, the largest shareholder of which is the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) with a 61% stake.

A PAC report found that BNS’s poor financials were caused by abuse of power and mismanagement.

The PAC also said the terms and conditions of the LCS contract are unfavourable to the government, as payment for the project was based on development and item procurement instead of the actual construction progress of the ships. – August 8, 2022.