Najib made a strategic mistake by being in the forefront defending the RM9 billion LCS scandal when he dared not publicly deny that he had anything to do with it
Former Prime Minister, Najib Razak, made a strategic mistake by being in the forefront defending the RM9 billion Littoral Combatant Ship (LCS) scandal in the first week the Public Accounts Committee report on the LCS scandal was tabled in Parliament on August 4, 2022 when he dared not publicly deny that he had anything to do with it.
He was even more outspoken than the current Defence Minister, Hishammuddin Hussein and the Defence Minister when the disastrous RM9 billion LCS procurement was decided upon, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
His challenge the previous Saturday to those who blamed him for the failed LCS procurement to show proof that he interfered with the ships’ design has ended like a damp squib as more information on the RM9 billion LCS scandal in the last few days have shown that the history of the LCS procurement went as far back as 2007 when Najib was the Defence Minister and reinforced the perception that the most powerful decision-maker in the LCS procurement was Najib who became Prime Minister and Finance Minister in April 2009, and not Zahid whom Najib appointed Defence Minister in the first Najib cabinet.
How can this conundrum as to who was the most powerful decision-maker in the RM9 billion LCS scandal be solved?
There is only one way – the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the RM9 billion LCS scandal.
UMNO Youth has joined in the call for a RCI into the RM9 billion LCS scandal. Is UMNO Youth sincere?
Does Najib support the establishment of a RCI into the LCS scandal, which would be able to establish whether Najib was right to blame the 22-month Pakatan Harapan government for the LCS delay!
But Najib does not support a RCI into the RM9 billion LCS scandal, for it would not only flush out the “hidden hands” in the largest defence scandal in Malaysia, but prove Najib to be utterly wrong when he blamed the 22-month PH government for the LCS procurement delay – especially when the PH government had been illegally, undemocratically and unconstitutionally replaced by two governments which have together served a longer term of 22 months than the PH government.
I had asked Zahid Hamidi why as Defence Minister in 2011, he had overturned his earlier decision to procure the Sigma LCS design as recommended by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) to unilaterally and arbitrarily change it to the Gowind LCS design without consulting the end-user, the RMN, and in fact despite the RMN’s strong objections.
There was thunderous silence from Zahid and I can understand the reason why – Zahid would have to blame Najib, the then Prime Minister and Finance Minister
Najib should not try to mislead and fool Malaysians over the RM9 billion LCS scandal.
When is he going to admit that he was the main factor why the RM9 billion procurement for the six Sigma LCS was changed to Gowind LCS despite strong RMN objections and the myriad problems of the procurement where over RM6 billion was paid by the government but not a single LCS had been completed?