While the alternative media and including the blogs, is filled with stories relating to the ‘fouled’ purchase of the Eurocopter by the Ministry of Defence; the mainstream media chose to ignore the story, supposedly on grounds that it is too insignificant for the Malaysian taxpayers to have any knowledge of it.
The letter that was written by Capt Zahar Hashim (Retired), that first appeared in Malaysia Today and in several other blogs is stunning, and it lays bear the devious and cunning acts of person(s) in authority and power, to willfully cheat the government merely to satisfy their lust for money. Capt Zahar’s exposure of such devious and cunning acts by Mindef officials is brave, and should serve as a trend setter in our efforts to eradicate corruption at the highest level of government, whoever the person(s) may be.
If the previous allegation that the commission derived from the purchase of the French submarine was RM 500 million (or was it US 500 million), this time around, I suppose the Eurocopter deal would reap a commission exceeding the aforesaid amount. This is certainly good business, and little wonder, the Mindef Officer who was reported have issued the Letter of Intent (LOI) for the purchase of the Eurocopter was in such a hurry. Who actually is to gain by this hurried deal? Could it be the officer that signed the LOI, or could it be his superiors, or could it be some ministers?
There has already been too much of talk of corruption and dubious practice in the award of contracts by Mindef, and I wish not to dwell too much on this, for it has already become a ‘house-hold’ word among the many contractors that deals with Mindef. I have also been told by some contractor friends of mine that foreigners now gets ‘goose-flesh’ the moment they talk about doing business with Mindef.
And in the festivities and joyous mood surrounding the UMNO elections, nobody seemed to really care about what is happening to the country. 'The economy is doing well', they say, 'and that we have enough reserve to cushion the impact of a financial crunch'.
While Singapore, the most developed country in the region has declared itself to be in recession now, Malaysia on the other hand ‘is assured of the 5% growth and is on track’, say the new Minister of Finance.
Politicians can say anything they wished now, but they ought to remember that it is the people that has the final say.
CRUSADE AGAINST CORRUPTION
Posted at 12.35pm on Oct 15,2008
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6 comments:
The famous saying goes among arm dealers...' there are only two gold left in the world; one in South Africa and the other in MINDEF Malaysia.
On the contrary, a foreigner like Sidney Franklin (British citizen) enjoys doing business with Mindef.
I was told through his close association with key decision-makers in Mindef, he has successfully sold a few mega defence projects worth RM billions on a 'direct negotiation basis' with Mindef within the last 2-3 years.
It seems certain overseas military equipment manufacturers prefer to appoint Sidney Franklin as their local agent in Malaysia.
Rather strange Mindef seems to accept this, allowing a foreigner like Sydney Franklin to take the business role of a local agent against the normal practice.
Dear Eli & Maurice,
I will certainly want to find out more about Sidney Franklin. If it is true that he enjoys patronage by Mindef, then it is our responsibility to put things right.
Thanks for the info.
I stumbled on this report in Malaysia Today by T Gopal of Kota Damansara:
"In a way, it's unfair to compare an apple with a pear. You must compare an apple with an apple. Therefore, let's compare
the price of Eurocopter EC 725 ordered by both Brazil and Malaysia :
In June 2008, Brazil and France signed an agreement in principle for Eurocopter to build helicopters in the South
American country via its subsidiary Helibras. Brazil 's Defense Minister Nelson Jobim reportedly said that the country
intended to buy 50 "Super Cougar" models, the first of which would be delivered in 2010. The deal's value is reportedly
around US$1.2 billion. ( refer to http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/Brazil-Signs-1B-Production-Deal-for-Cougar-
Helicopters-04959/) . That is RM4.14 billion for 50 copters or RM82.8 million per unit. And we ordered 12 copters for
RM2.317 billion, (refer to http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/91215) meaning RM193 million per unit! So, multiply by 12
units, it comes to a cool RM1.3 billion. Not a bad golden handshake".
Mindef's explanation on the NURI replacement tender process which appeared in the local dailies on 18 Oct 08 is not entirely satisfactory.
Saying that the RMAF is
well abreast with the aircrafts' performance (bidding in the tender) is no excuse not to conduct a physical evaluation.
Such evaluation is best done in our environment in accordance with RMAF's operational requirements.Only then we know the true capability of the aircraft concerned.
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