KUALA LUMPUR – The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will commence two new proceedings involving issues concerning the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) and the National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe) project after the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration.
PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said that the LTAT proceeding will commence on June 20, 2024, with the summoning of LTAT’s former chairman, former chief executive officer, and former senior strategic director.
She said the NIISe proceeding, on the other hand, will begin by calling witnesses from the Home Ministry, Immigration Department, Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit, Cybersecurity, and vendors involved in NIISe and the National Immigration Control System (SKIN).
“The commencement date for the NIISe proceeding will be fixed later. The terms of reference will be handed over to the Home Ministry and the Immigration Department to prepare relevant information,” she told a press conference at Parliament today.
She said that the PAC decided to initiate these proceedings following the high court’s decision ordering the government to pay RM231.5 million to a company for the termination of the contract for the SKIN project, now known as NIISe.
Meanwhile, Mas Ermieyati, who is also Masjid Tanah MP, said that a total of four PAC reports and three ministry follow-up action reports had been tabled during the first meeting of the Dewan Rakyat as a result of all PAC activities for the first quarter of 2024.
Apart from that, she said three issues have been resolved through PAC proceedings but have yet to be tabled, namely the Felcra Bhd issue, the HRD Corp management of training funds and the effectiveness of training programmes, and the forest management and environmental impact issue.
“Overall, the PAC has met for an average of 83 hours in the first quarter of 2024, involving 12 ministries, and this does not include a field visit to Sarawak on February 5 to assess the conditions of four dilapidated schools,” she said.
She said that, based on the seven reports tabled thus far, the PAC concluded that the government must continue its efforts to ensure that the country’s financial management, particularly contracts, acquisitions, and project priorities, continues to be monitored.
“The PAC believes that the responsible parties’ corrective actions to address all emerging issues should be commended. Nevertheless, it will be better if all projects are implemented smoothly without any problems so that the people can enjoy their benefits,” she said.– March 27, 2024