WONG Kah Woh has told Najib Razak that the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is an independent body and its findings on the multi-billion-ringgit littoral combat ship (LCS) scandal were a multi-party effort.

The PAC chairman pointed out that the PAC comprised lawmakers from the government and the opposition, and not a DAP outfit as Najib appeared to imply in his rebuttals of the findings.

He referred to Najib as PM6 as he was the country’s sixth prime minister.

Wong said the PAC has 14 members, of which eight are government lawmakers, including three from Umno.

“Fourteen MPs from different parties, we are united. United to ensure public funds are safeguarded. Any decision is by consensus.

“We are independent, unlike under PM6’s government when the (committee’s) 1MDB report was edited by the PAC chief appointed by PM6,” he said in a statement today, which he posted on Facebook with the heading “Hi PM6”.

During the Najib administration, the PAC chairman, Hasan Arifin, had unilaterally made the decision to delete Bank Negara Malaysia’s assertion that Good Star Ltd – a company that 1MDB funds had been diverted to – was owned by fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low.

“I also want to inform (him) that the statements by the PAC chairman were based on opinions, conclusions and recommendations that were formed with consensus after two years of investigating the issue,” said Wong, who is Ipoh Timur MP, in the post.

“These are not the views of the PAC chairman alone.”

On Thursday, the PAC disclosed that it had held nine proceedings regarding the LCS issue starting on November 18, 2020, and the last one on March 8 this year, by calling several witnesses.

The results of the proceedings found that the contract was awarded to Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd in direct negotiation, with the government paying RM6.083 billion but not even one LCS has been delivered.

According to the original schedule, five ships should be ready and handed over by this month.

Najib, in a series of posts on social media, has made several rebuttals on the report soon after the PAC tabled it in parliament.

Wong corrected Najib on his position in DAP and told the Pekan MP that he was no long the party’s youth chief and since his time, two different party men had been youth chiefs.

Wong is currently a member of the DAP’s central executive committee. – August 7, 2022.