Thesun 2009-08-19 Page01 Probe On Pkfz Project

Member of Audit Bureau of Circulations (Malaysia)

300,000 COPIES DAILY 30 SEN for delivery to your doorstep

2009 AWARDS Award winning newspaper for excellence in investigative reporting

No. 4827 PP 2644/12/2009 (023092)

Wednesday August 19, 2009

TELLING IT AS IT IS

» Teoh’s injuries not due to torture pg6

Bye-bye mummy-ji

» Ex-Korean leader Kim dies pg10

News without borders

pg18

Probe on PKFZ project

Study on proposal to drop race column by Husna Yusop [email protected]

by Giam Say Khoon [email protected]

LANG: Bukit Aman’s commercial crime department is investigating alleged irregularities amounting to up to RM1 billion over the Port Klang Free Zone project. This follows a report lodged by the Port Klang Authority against PKFZ turnkey developer Kuala

K

Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB) and its consultant BTA Architect. PKA chairman Datuk Lee Hwa Beng said yesterday police officers had visited PKA and interviewed him at length on Friday and Monday. A team of up to five officers also took statements from an undisclosed number of PKA employees yesterday. Each visit lasted the whole day. Lee, who chaired a second board

meeting on the special task force report on the PKFZ scandal yesterday, declined to say what transpired at these sessions but he is happy that police acted swiftly on his report lodged last week at the Klang police headquarters. That report was based on the findings of the special task force that was set up to identify weaknesses in the PKFZ and come up with

BERNAMAPIX

PUTRAJAYA: The cabinet is studying the possibility of dropping the requirement for information on race in most official forms and documents, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said yesterday. He said there are some discussions on the matter but a final decision has yet to be made as the government needs time to look into the ramifications. “There were some views that, maybe, there is a need for us not to focus so much on race. But there were also some who said it is still a necessity, for reasons like gathering of information on how we fare among races,” he said. Speaking to reporters at a book launch yesterday, he said he cannot determine how soon the government will come up with a decision. Online news portal Malaysian Insider had reported yesterday that the cabinet has agreed to drop the column on “race” from most official forms and Malaysians can opt out of stating their race in documents which still have such a requirement. A government official familiar with the move reportedly told the portal that the decision was made early this month. He was quoted as saying the civil service is working to eliminate the category in all new forms and documents being printed. However, some forms will continue to have the category in relation to special privileges for bumiputras. The proposal to drop the requirement to state one’s race in forms is not a new one as many quarters have called for it, saying that in some cases, the forms are drawn up without assessing whether the information is actually needed.

www.sun2surf.com

On the beat ... Volunteer policeman Ismail Madingar, 36, (left) from the people’s volunteer corps (Rela) checks a motorcyclist along Jalan Nagasari, Bukit Bintang, yesterday. Assisting Ismail are police corporal Abdul Razak and Lance Corporal Batron Ajin (second right) who are patrolling the streets as part of the enforcement agency’s strategy to reduce street crimes like snatch theft. Such patrols will be mounted in major cities.

recommendations, together with two other committees. Asked if the PKA will also lodge a report with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) based on the task force report, Lee said the board has yet to decide on this. He, however, noted that a report was lodged with the commission when the PricewaterhouseCoopers report was released in May and since then it had visited PKA a few times. Asked if the MACC asked for a copy of the seven-volume task force report, he said the board is still going through it and it will not be declassified to the public or the MACC for now. He said going through the report is a tedious process and will take time. At the end of yesterday’s sevenhour-long board meeting, Lee issued a statement saying the board members deliberated on recommendations in relation to possible fraud, negligence, wrongdoings and irregularities, as well as the issue of unenforceability of certain agreements. “The board also discussed the issues raised by the task force in relation to breaches of fiduciary duty by certain individuals, as well as the conspiracy to defraud PKA with regards the PKFZ,” he said. He said they decided to take follow-up actions on decisions made yesterday and seek further advice on certain issues. Announcements are expected soon. The board was also briefed on Lee’s status as chairman following the allegation by KDSB deputy CEO Datuk Faizal Abdullah that Lee’s tenure is null and void as his appointment was not valid. Lee said the board members agree that the discharge of his duties is regular and due process has been followed. It was reported that MACC had questioned KDSB chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing last week but no details were given on the interview. Asked why the turnkey developer’s opinion was not sought by the special task force when preparing the report as claimed by KDSB, Lee explained that the special task force wrote to KDSB but the latter did not reply. “We cannot give a copy of the report to KDSB because the report is made only for the PKA and whatever revealed so far was decided by the board,” he said.