Senator Tunku Abdul Aziz had four oral questions out of seven shot down by Mindef in the Senate which left him irked.

judiciary crisis forum 290907 tunku abdul aziz The questions were not answered because they were said to have involved military secrets.

"I understand that the purchase of military equipment is sensitive and we need to protect military secrets, such as elements of the specifications and our strategies," he said in a statement issued today.

"However, the questions asked are not to obtain military secrets, but to get background information on the purchases and development of military equipment announced by the ministry itself," he explained.

He said that when the Defence Ministry announced the purchase of its equipment, it is not a secret.

"The purchase of expensive military equipment needs approval from Parliament. Therefore, it is reasonable for MPs to discuss and know basic information, but not the specification and programs related to the strategy."

He added that members of Parliament and the people have the right to see a list of military equipment purchases for the next five years of the Tenth Malaysian Plan.

"Given that the purchase of military equipment is very expensive and corruption can easily take place, it should be monitored by Parliament and the people in line with the principles of good governance and increase transparency of government."

The questions are left unanswered were:

  1. Can the Defence Ministry state the background behind the government's purchase of the Vera-E system which was stated on page 72 of Mindef's 2007 annual report. Is it related to the PADAS project and threat from foreign Stealth aircraft?
  2. Can the Defence Ministry state the background of the purchase of cruise missiles revealed by the former Deputy Defence Minister Zainal Abidin Md Zin on July 4 2007 in the Dewan Rakyat?
  3. Can the Defence Ministry state the status of development of the missile Taming Sari XK98 which was built by Research Institute for Defence Science and Technology (STRIDE), in terms of its expenditure and technological cooperation with which country, as well as the background, the effectiveness of development and the status of this missile?
  4. Can the Defence Ministry state the list of equipment by its type, numbers, and allocation which will be launched within the next five years by the Malaysian Army, Royal Malaysian Navy, Royal Malaysian Air Force and the army base for the Malaysian Armed Force?