PETALING JAYA: The defence ministry will implement a rotation of its officers involved in procuring assets for the armed forces, in a move to curb misappropriation.
Defence minister Khaled Nordin said the rotation would be carried out every few years, ensuring that no single officer handles defence procurements for an extended period of time, Harian Metro reported.
He added that this was in line with Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim’s call for Putrajaya to uphold integrity in procuring military equipment.
Sultan Ibrahim had said he would vet all military equipment procurements to ensure they are of high quality and meet Malaysia’s defence needs.
Khaled said there were various types of procurement for Malaysia’s military and that Sultan Ibrahim already had access to knowledge of such matters as the supreme commander of the armed forces.
We will continue to fully cooperate (with Sultan Ibrahim). However, at present, there are no specific issues, he was quoted as saying, adding that his ministry only procured assets after the finance ministry gave the green light.
On Saturday, the king issued a stern warning against corruption and abuse of power in the military, saying it could jeopardise the sovereignty and dignity of the nation.
Sultan Ibrahim said he would not tolerate any officers who engaged in corruption, abused their power or failed to carry out their duties with integrity.
One of the most controversial defence procurements is the much-delayed littoral combat ship (LCS) project, which is said to be Malaysia’s largest defence procurement in history.
It was initially to cost Putrajaya RM9 billion but this was revised to RM11.2 billion. The LCS project had been awarded to Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNS) through direct negotiations.
The LCS project has been the subject of investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission as well as the Public Accounts Committee. The latter had revealed that not even one of the six ships had been completed although Putrajaya had already paid RM6.08 billion.
Ahmad Ramli Nor, a former navy chief and ex-BNS managing director, is standing trial on three criminal breach of trust charges linked to the LCS project.
