Hishammuddin Hussein has been urged to investigate the alleged corruption in the Defence Ministry that he is in charge of, including the Scorpene submarine scandal and the pension for army veterans.

PKR Youth chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said this following the defence minister’s declaration that he is prepared for any corruption investigation against him.

"This is a brave statement by a minister, which should be praised for espousing openness and transparency, which seem to be alien to the current administration.

"As defence minister, it is most important for him to extend this openness and explain several legacy issues in his portfolio, including the billion-ringgit Scorpene submarine scandal that took place when Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak was defence minister," Nik Nazmi said in a statement.

Last year, Paris prosecutors launched formal investigations into whether Najib received bribes for a US$1.2 billion arms deal when he was defence minister.

The probe is to determine if a former president of French defence group, Thales International Asia, had in 2002 paid kickbacks to Najib via the prime minister’s associate, Abdul Razak Baginda, for a contract to supply the two Scorpene submarines to Malaysia.

Razak Baginda, Najib and Bernard Baiocco, the former Thales International Asia president, have denied the allegations.

Nik Nazmi said the Scorpene scandal had smeared Malaysia's global reputation, in the same way that the 1MDB scandal is putting Malaysia to shame following international investigations into the matter.

Negative impact on army veterans

"1MDB too has brought negative impact on army veterans who have to suffer late pension payments for several months due to the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT)'s dealings with 1MDB. And this happened when the rakyat are under pressure from the bad economy," he said.

LTAT has denied this and sued PKR vice-president Rafiz Ramli for defamation for his statement blaming LTAT's subsidiary, Perbadanan Perwira Hartanah Malaysia (PPHM), for its dealings with 1MDB that caused the delays in gratuity payments to army veterans.

Rafizi claimed to be in possession of a document which purportedly reveals that 1MDB owed the LTAT subsidiary just under RM400 million up to September 2015. The document is sealed under the Official Secrets Act 1972.

Hishammuddin, at an integrity pledge event at the Defence Ministry on Monday, said anyone who has evidence of corruption against him should lodge a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.

He also said those in the ministry involved in corruption were traitors as they are tasked with ensuring national defence and security.

Hishammuddin said those found guilty of corruption would be transferred out of the ministry.

However, his remarks drew flak from Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) MP Siti Mariah Mahmud.

"The place for the corrupt is not in another ministry, but in jail. In other countries, civil servants found guilty of corruption are sentenced to death," she said in a statement.

Siti Mariah said there was no guarantee that someone who committed corruption in one ministry would not repeat the offence if he or she is transferred to another ministry.

She argued that severe penalties were needed for graft in the Defence Ministry, as its officials have access to sensitive information that could undermine national sovereignty.