Public Accounts Committee chairperson Azmi Khalid today said the committee has cleared the government of any wrongdoing in the suspended billion-ringgit Eurocopter deal.

Azmi told reporters in Parliament after a PAC meeting that the committee found no procedural abuse in the Eurocopter tender process. parliament session 031108 azmi khalid

However, the powerful committee was concerned that there was no physical examination on the 12 Eurocopter helicopters which the government wanted to purchase.

Azmi also said that the PAC wanted the government to be more transparent in the future, and recommended that an independent review panel be set up to look into at all major purchases.

Earlier, the committee had met with officers from the finance and defence ministries.

"In terms of procedure, PAC's task was to see whether procedures were followed. It needs to be remembered that this is a (procurement through) international tender. We are being scrutinised around the world, so we have to be very transparent.

"When we looked at the technical and financial levels, we found that the procedures followed the standards set, and which are used at the international level.

"The way we go about (things) must be in strict compliance (with those standards) because we are being observed," he stressed.

Asked if PAC had found any element of irregularities or abuse in the deal, Azmi said: "In our assessment, we do not see that."

Being more transparent

Clarifying the different figures that had been cited, Azmi said while the lowest of three tenders to replace the Air Force's aging fleet of Nuri helicopters was RM1.262 billion and the highest was RM2.442 billion, the government had opted for Eurocopter, which quoted RM1.604 billion.

He also said that the PAC, and the public in general, wanted the government to be more transparent in the future and to ensure there was no wastage of public funds.

For this reason, the committee suggested that an independent review panel be set up to look into all large purchases.

"It is up to the government to determine what ‘large' is. RM100 million? More? We suggest that this panel look into large deals entered into by all ministries.

"People are demanding ... they want to see more transparency in financial transactions," he said.

helicopter military eurocopter cougor ec 725 troop transporter Azmi added that among the main concerns of PAC was that there were no detailed physical inspections on the 12 Eurocopter helicopters before the government stated its intention to purchase them.

Malaysian Air Force pilots had flight tested Eurocopter helicopters with other specifications from as far back as 1994, but no flight tests were done on the aircrafts with the specifications specified, he said.

He added this was because choppers with similar specifications had been used elsewhere and in other circumstances.

"So, based on experience, they (the military) were of the view that these (helicopters) did not need to be flight-tested."

In order to prevent the recurrence of past problems where the delivery of purchases were overlooked - such as an incident where only 44 Skyhawk helicopters were delivered when 84 were ordered - Azmi said the Defence Ministry had agreed to make closer inspections once the helicopters were ready.

PAC to continue monitoring

Asked if the conclusions reached by the committee meant that the case was closed, Azmi said PAC would like to monitor the issue further.

"How far we go, we cannot say... If there's anything (that arises), we'll call them (finance and defence officers) back," said Azmi.

Asked about the Anti-Corruption Agency's statement over the weekend that it was also probing into the matter, Azmi said that was the ACA's prerogative to do so.

"In terms of procedure, we found it was done within whatever limits they have," he said.

Azmi also said the PAC was not tasked with determining whether, and how much, commission had been allocated for brokers.

"Commissions are often talked about, but it's difficult to see (them)," he said.

Azmi was also asked if the question arose regarding the timing of the Eurocopter deal - given the letter of intent was issued two days before former defence minister Najib Abdul Razak became finance minister.

To this, Azmi said: "We didn't ask those questions. That is outside our PAC, which was not addressing that. We were addressing whether procurement was done correctly."

PAC was also concerned, however, that the suspension of the deal would mean the Air Force's continued reliance with the 40-year-old Nuri helicopters.

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