Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai must stop sidestepping the Public Accounts Committee's (PAC) recommendation for a full audit of the KL International Airport 2 (KLIA2) and allow it to begin.

DAP parliamentarian Tony Pua said Liow has been giving excuse after excuse, for example saying the ministry had in fact set up a committee before the PAC report and had told Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) to cooperate with the PAC.

"The minister has once again sidestepped the first and key recommendation from the PAC - that is to allow the auditor-general to audit MAHB over the scandal.

 

"The PAC has already heard and queried the officers from the Ministry of Transport and MAHB extensively before concluding the PAC report with the relevant recommendations. 

"Hence, there is not much more point for the MAHB to just 'to cooperate with PAC' again," Pua said in a statement today.

 

"The PAC has already produced the damning report, which found many elements of gross mismanagement, and that’s why we recommended for the auditor-general to audit the project. 

"However, the government must provide the necessary instruction to the auditor-general to do so," said the Petaling Jaya Utara MP.

Liow has thus far responded to the PAC's recommendations for a thorough audit on the controversial project, which Pua had previously complained of having flooded in cost overruns, saying a committee has been set up.

However, this committee is aimed at looking at the airport’s safety issues, to which Pua said is “being restricted in scope” and had avoided any of the issues raised by PAC which “caused the inflated RM4 billion budget and repeatedly extended deadlines”.

PAC, had on Nov 25 criticised MAHB in the report for the manner in which it had constructed KLIA2.

The construction of the new airport was built to accommodate the rapid expansion of the low-cost carrier sector, and was initially expected to cost RM2 billion and completed in April 2012.

However, it had cost RM3.6 billion instead when after countless of delays, it officially opened on May 2 of this year.

The airport, which is the replacement for the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT), had been afflicted with various problems, including “ponding”.

As such, the Consultation and Prevention panel of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission had also proposed an inquiry panel to find reason for cost overruns and delays.

‘Construction cost ballooned to almost double’

“The panel of inquiry should be mindful that the cost of construction has ballooned to almost double the original amount,” said its chairperson Johan Jaaffar in a statement in Kuala Lumpur on June 17.

Liow, during a Parliamentary session, however, denied that KLIA2 experienced flood after heaving rain, and said it was merely “ponding” instead and said no flights have been affected by this yet.

The public raised their concerns when pictures of workers collecting buckets of water from the apron of the airport was tweeted by MAHB. The apron is where the aircraft at an airport are parked.

With all these issue being raised by various parties, Pua pointed out that the question now remains is what will Liow do next?

“(Will he) abide by PAC’s recommendation to prove that MAHB and his ministry has nothing to hide, or will he try to sidestep the issue, praying that the issue will just go away quietly in order to protect the vested interest parties of those involved in the RM4 billion scandal?” Pua asked.