YOURSAY | 'Ahmad Ramli is a scapegoat because GE15 is coming soon.'

LCS scandal: Former MD charged with three counts of CBT

MACC to charge former BNS official over LCS project - report

Kim Quek: Looking at the charges against former Navy chief and ex-Boustead Naval Shipyard managing director Ahmad Ramli Mohd Nor, even a casual observer can see that this is but a decoy to cover up the massive abuse of power and corruption at the highest echelon of political power that led to the tragic failure of Malaysia’s RM9 billion project to build six littoral combat ships (LCS).

Such farcical prosecution has also once again confirmed that our law enforcers, MACC and Attorney-General's Chambers, are vulnerable to political manipulations and cannot be relied upon to discharge their duties impartially and fearlessly.

Under the circumstances, nothing short of a truly independent and technically competent royal commission of inquiry (RCI) would suffice to get to the bottom of the rot and come up with remedies to put our defence procurement on the right footing.

But, of course, the latter can only be satisfactorily achieved if a clean and competent political leadership is installed.

In retrospect, we have had an endless series of defence procurement scandals which have plagued and weakened our defence system over the past decades, besides draining our coffers. It is high time we put a stop to this now.

Cogito Ergo Sum: I doubt if this former high-ranking officer of BNS, Ahmad Ramli, would have had the gall to misappropriate such a massive amount if he had not got the nod from the higher political hierarchy.

He is a scapegoat because the 15th general election is coming soon. None of the former ministers will be charged because it reflects poorly on the current regime. This is how they operate.

Once your shelf life is over, they throw you into the trash can. The finger will never be pointed at the real person behind this wheel of fortune.

For being a fool, this former Navy chief will sink for the sins of others.

Cyclonus: This is an alleged criminal breach of trust (CBT) case at the main contractor's (BNS) level.

What about the bigger overriding case at the government level? If RM6 billion wasn't paid out to BNS in the first place, there wouldn't be a BNS CBT case.

Somebody (or bodies) must be held accountable and liable for the change in design and approval of monies for work not done and basically, negligence and mismanagement of this national interest project required to bolster our defence and protect our sovereignty.

And I strongly suspect there was foul play afoot. I hope the opposition keeps the pressure on this.

Koel: The actual amount spent runs into billions, but this man has been charged with CBT for RM21 million.

So, who is responsible for the rest? Did Ahmad Ramli make these decisions on his own on such amounts that he is charged with or was it with the approval of higher authorities?

If the latter, who were these higher authorities?

Justice: Indeed, the charge is alleged CBT of RM21 million. But RM6 billion has already been paid as of 2020, in addition to a cost overrun of RM1.6 billion!

It is illogical for only the accused to commit the alleged CBT. All the payments would have to go through layers of approval. The Audit Department and the Treasury would have definitely inquired about the matter.

OCT: It is unbelievable that a contractor of BNS can claim and be paid without verifying documents submitted to the government.

The government has been made to look like a fool that RM6 billion can be paid out without proper validation or checks.

If the contractor can claim RM6 billion payments, I would like to hire him for his ingenuity.

This is not a simple case of stealing two packets of Milo where you have CCTV to identify the thief and the evidence is with the thief. This is a grand heist.

The government seems to be not keen on finding the truth of the scandal as the truth can bring the house of cards tumbling down.

The rakyat will never know the truth with the present government. Vote for a new government and there will be a chance that big sharks will be caught and sent to jail.

Constitutional Supremacy: The charges say the offences were committed in 2011 and 2012. This proves that MACC and the government knew about this CBT 10 years ago.

Why charge now? To divert attention and make him a scapegoat? MACC must explain this.

BobbyO: MACC, you have done it over and over again, protecting those really guilty and charging a small fry to try and please the multitudes.

You have sold the dignity and the security of this nation. The nation remains unprepared for war with submarines that cannot sink, helicopters that are not delivered and now warships that have not seen the light of day, even after RM6 billion have been paid.

Shame on you. When you stand and salute the Malaysian flag, take a deep look in the mirror, whether you have been faithful to the nation, or to the criminals that have sold this nation.

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