Suspecting “elements of corruption” in the financing of the K-Pop performance at last year’s National Youth Day, Penang DAP Socialist Youth has lodged a report with the the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

NONEBukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim (left) and DAP Bukit Bendera chief Haris Zuan lodged the report at the MACC office in Penang today, based on details revealed in the Auditor-General’s Report 2012.

They have asked the MACC to carry out its probe without fear or favour into the RM1.6 million spent on the event, organised by the Youth and Sports Ministry.

However in an immediate response, the MACC said that Sim did not lodge a report but only wrote a letter to the anti-graft body.

“As a matter of fact, Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim came to the MACC Penang office and gave MACC a letter, and not lodging a report.

“MACC is looking into the content of the letter given to us,” Penang MACC director Samarajoo Manikam said in a statement.

In his complaint, Sim pointed to the cost - originally stated as RM15 million - of organising the event which was held from May 23-27, 2012 in Putrajaya.

Then minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek had earlier told the media that private sponsors had on Oct 9, 2013 contributed about RM28 million, an increase from RM10 million in 2011.

"In the last sitting of Parliament, the ministry requested an additional allocation of RM12 million for the event," Sim told reporters.

"According to the Auditor-General's Report, another RM12.61 million was spent on aid to youth bodies to organise the event.”

The report also states that this resulted in the total expenditure as being unclear, Sim said.

After the cost was revealed, it was learnt that the ministry had spent RM67.61 million, or an average of RM13.52 million a day, on the programme, he added.

"The cost of RM67.61 million is too high for the programme. The auditor-general has stated that the event was organised without much thought (tidak berhemat)," said Sim, who also questioned the discrepancies in official statements made to date.

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