Pac Concerned Over Lcs Project Delay

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 29 (Bernama) -- The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today expressed concern over the ongoing delay in the building of the littoral combat ship (LCS) project belonging to the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN).

Its chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said in the presentation of the follow-up action report on the progress of the LCS project, the committee was informed that as of December 2023, the project had been delayed 86 days as it reached 67.28 per cent completion compared to the new timeline set by the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) which was 68.77 per cent. .

" PAC's main concern is that the construction of the LCS ships continues to be late. Besides, the issue of detailed design for the ships has also failed to be finalised by MINDEF with the French company that designed the LCS which is Naval Group," she said at a press conference in the Parliament Building, today.

She was commenting on the follow-up action report taken by MINDEF on the 11 recommendations made by the PAC on the progress of the LCS project for the period from October 2022 to September 2023 which was presented today.

Mas Ermieyati also said the contractor for the project, Boustead Naval Shipyard (BNS), which was renamed Lumut Naval Shipyard (LUNAS) after it was taken over by Ocean Sunshine Bhd, owned by the Minister of Finance Incorporated on August 18, last year.

"The public can read every PAC follow-up and comment by visiting the PAC website at www.parlimen.gov.my/pac," she said.

In the meantime, Mas Ermieyati said PAC had started proceedings regarding the implementation of the Multi-Lane Fast Flow System Project (MLFF) under the Ministry of Public Works (KKR) and Malaysian Highways Board (LLM) on February 26.

She said a total of three witnesses were called at the proceedings, namely KKR deputy secretary-general (Policy and Development) Datuk Zahrul Hakim Abdullah, LLM director-general Datuk Sazali Harun and MLLF Special Task Force Leader Khairulanuar Muhari.

She said, PAC will continue the MLFF project implementation proceedings by holding three separate proceedings on March 25.

The witnesses to be called are the president of the Association of Malaysian Highway Concession Companies Datuk Zakaria Ahmad Zabidi, director of the Selangor Network Consortium Sdn Bhd Datuk Seri Azmi Abdul Aziz, chief executive officer of the SEP Synergy Sdn Bhd Group Zaharin Hamzah and the director-general of the Public Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) Datuk Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar.

MLFF is a non-stop toll collection system that uses the Automatic Registration Number Recognition (ANPR) system, in addition to the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system designed to reduce traffic congestion on toll highways.

In principle, its implementation was approved in 2021 by the previous government with an initial allocation of RM3.46 billion, but 32 highway toll concession companies reportedly objected to the project because they claimed the government had awarded it directly to a private company, YTL Corporation Bhd, without consulting the concession companies that will finance its implementation.

-- BERNAMA