Malaysiakini : ‘How many more years must we wait before we see the ships?’​ Cabinet unanimously agrees to proceed with LCS procurement.

OCT: This has become a bailout for the presumably bumiputera contractors. RM6 billion had already been paid out, but the vendors apparently did not get the money. So ‘die die’, the government must step in to rescue them.

Meanwhile, the government will investigate as usual without any culprits identified. It is impossible that the government cannot trace where the money has gone with its huge resources, talents and advanced tools for forensic investigation. When the results of the investigation implicate VVIPs and cronies, don’t expect the government to shame itself. The investigation will become a cold case. 

The government is also pouring good money after bad. It would seem that by the time the Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) are delivered, they will become obsolete due to technological advances. Time is of the essence here. Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein is just painting a feel-good picture. All his suggestions are afterthoughts as if they were not in existence in the first place.

That a big security project like this can go haywire without any oversight is unbelievable. The rakyat have the right to know where, to whom and how the RM6 billion was spent without seeing any deliverables.

BobbyO: Here we go again. There is still money left as oil and palm oil prices are up. So give the people a ‘shiok sendiri’ (self-praising) speech about how we need the combat ships, how we love the nation and how these ships will be purchased and used for the protection of our citizens.

Look at 1MDB, the Scorpene submarines, and the hundreds of failed purchases of substandard or overpriced goods. Billions gone, and what has the nation and its people got back in return? Zilch. Traitors have sold this nation’s security for a fistful of ringgit. Malaysians by now are used to such false talk.

It all boils down to how much we can profit from such ‘cepat kaya’ (get rich quick) schemes. The other fact is they (the traitors) are already rich beyond their capabilities. MACC, the ‘pick and choose who to investigate’ agency, will be responsible for making sure all is above board. Indeed, the elites, politicians and even top civil servants have made a mockery of the phrase “loyalty to the nation”.

Kim Quek: This LCS procurement project is typical of the many scandalous defence procurement contracts under the kleptocratic Umno rule where billions after billions of taxpayers’ money were squandered through corruption. It’s easy for the cabinet to decide to continue with the current contract by pumping more billions into this obviously failed project so as to keep the cronies afloat, but what will be the end results?

How many more billions must we spend? How many more years must we wait before we see the ships? Will the ships ever be completed according to the specifications? A full and independent inquiry should obviously be set up to probe the current failure before any major decision is made, and Pakatan Harapan, which helmed the Defence Ministry briefly with Mohamad ‘Mat’ Sabu as its minister, should promptly make its stand on this issue.