Transactions involving billions of ringgit in public assets surfaced in 2018, referred to enforcement agencies but never properly explained, says MP
PETALING JAYA: Controversial land-swap deals involving billions of ringgit in public assets under the Defence Ministry (Mindef), which were flagged years ago and reported to enforcement authorities, are under renewed scrutiny as calls grow for more transparency.
Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng (pic) said the deals, which surfaced during internal reviews in 2018 and were referred to enforcement agencies in 2019, were never properly explained despite public concern and official oversight.
He said the land-swap deals involved billions in public assets and the issues were never properly addressed.
“The Defence Ministry must open its books and explain itself. Sweeping the matter under the carpet is unacceptable and an insult to public accountability.”
Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin urged enforcement agencies to act “without fear or favour”.
Their remarks came after Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki said an ongoing probe into army procurement would also examine other areas within the Defence Ministry.
The land-swap projects first came under scrutiny in 2018 when a special investigative committee on governance, procurement and finance reviewed a series of defence land transactions largely carried out through direct negotiations.
The committee examined 16 land-swap projects covering about 2,923 acres, with developments valued between RM4.75 billion and RM4.89 billion.
Following the committee’s findings, Mindef lodged formal reports with MACC and police in 2019, with initial reports filed in February and others in May.
MACC later confirmed receiving the reports, describing the investigations as complex, involving multiple transactions and parties.
Among the projects reviewed was a Mindef land-swap in Penang at Batu Uban, in which land was allegedly exchanged under a direct negotiation arrangement linked to the construction of an army facility.
The Penang project formed part of the same portfolio of land-swap cases assessed for governance, valuation and procurement weaknesses alongside projects in other states.
In February 2019, then Defence minister Mohamad Sabu said the committee had identified an estimated RM500 million in losses or leakage arising from the land-swap deals, citing weaknesses in governance, valuation and contract management.
He said Mindef had referred the matter to MACC and other enforcement agencies for further action.
Despite these disclosures, the detailed findings of the special committee, including project-level assessments, remain classified.
Other defence-related reports, such as those on the littoral combat ship and automated enforcement system projects, were declassified in 2022.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) later called for the Defence Ministry’s land-swap report to be declassified on June 15, 2023.
PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said she had written to the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) to seek declassification of the report, which had been presented to PAC during the 14th Parliament.
