THE Defence Ministry will review its procurement policies to prevent wastage and inefficiencies, its minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said yesterday.

“We will make sure that funds allocated to the Armed Forces are spent wisely and arms procurements and other contracts are delivered on time and within the budget.”

The ministry would also ensure that the arms procurement met specifications of the users and were up-to- date.

“As long as I’m Defence Minister I will make sure that the Armed Forces will not be the victim of greedy people who only want to make a quick buck.

“I hope I will not be alone in this task, and everyone in and outside the ministry will give their support,” he added.

Asked whether the review included past contracts, such as those for the local manufacture of the M4 carbines and maintenance programmes, Ahmad Zahid said it would include “all contracts”.

He also said the ministry’s arms purchases from now on would be handled by the Procurement Department.

He said as three services were capable of maintaining their arms and equipment they would be entrusted with the task.

Ahmad Zahid said the Armed Forces leadership would be responsible for the selection of arms with the co-operation of the ministry’s top civilian leadership.

“The military will need to trust the ministry’s civilians to do the right thing and vice-versa,” he said after attending the handing over ceremony of Desa Tunku Mariam, a housing complex for the Armed Forces and Defence Ministry civilian personnel.

In his speech, Ahmad Zahid lambasted the housing complex developer, Syarikat Perumahan Negara Bhd (SPNB), for the five-year delay in completing the project.

The housing complex was part of a RM1.5 billion contract awarded by the ministry to SPNB to build some 6,000 housing units.

He said not only were the houses completed behind schedule, some of them were defective and unfit for occupancy.

Ahmad Zahid, who was a former chairman of SPNB, said he knew why SPNB had failed to deliver the contract on time.

He took to task a former senior official of SPNB who he said was responsible for the delay.

He urged the present SPNB management to ensure that the company was free of individuals who indulged in corrupt practices.

“That’s the reason the rakyat is angry with the government. Not because we lack the vision but the implementation leaves much to be desired.”

Ahmad Zahid said while on paper the SPNB had made a profit from the venture, the government and taxpayers
had to fork out extra allocation to pay housing allowances for the affected personnel.

Armed Forces personnel living in barracks are not paid housing allowances.

Normal 0 HISTORY OF SCANDALS IN WEAPONS BUY

Last year, its decision to offer a contract worth RM1.6 billion to Eurocopter for the purchase of 12 EC-725 Cougar utility helicopters came under severe scrutiny after several politicians claimed the selection process was flawed.

The matter did not rest even after the Defence Ministry deferred the procurement, citing the economic crisis as the reason.

Another procurement that came under scrutiny was the purchase of two Scorpene submarines for some RM3 billion in 2002. Various allegations had been made since, the most sensational being that defence analyst Abdul Razak Baginda had allegedly received commission amounting to more than RM500 million for brokering the deal.

Like all other government procurements, the ministry had to sign the arms procurement contract with local companies acting as the principal contractors for foreign companies. The local companies usually make huge commissions from such deals but when it comes to maintenance and other issues, the ministry has to deal directly with foreign companies.

Last week, Malay Mail highlighted that the ministry would be paying millions of ringgit for a large batch of locally manufactured M4 carbines, even as its principal user, the US Army, is set to replace the weapon with a new one within two years.

The Malaysian army chose the M4 as its standard rifle in 2006 and the contract for the 14,000 rifles was signed with SME Ordnance at the 2007 Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace show. SME Ordnance will deliver the new batch of carbines by 2012.

An AP report yesterday cited a detailed history by a military historian on an attack on US forces in Wanat, Afghanistan, on July 13 last year, where the M4 carbine failed at a "critical moment". As a result, nine US soldiers died and 27 more were wounded in the battle.