Investigations into the National Feedlot Centre scandal must begin at the top to include decision makers involved in awarding the cattle-farming project, said PAS vice president Datuk Mahfuz Omar.
In calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the matter, Mahfuz said the various allegations directed towards the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) and its management, was merely the result of a "questionable" decision-making process.
NFC is headed by Datuk Seri Mohd Salleh Ismail, who is the husband of Women, Community and Families Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil.
"This includes the approval of a RM250 million soft loan to fund the project, without following procedures set out by the Finance Ministry," claimed Mahfuz during a press conference at PAS headquarters here today.
Mahfuz said an RCI should be set up to investigate all angles into the scandal, despite an ongoing probe by the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission into allegations of mismanagement and corruption in administration of NFC.
NFC was awarded the cattle-farming project in Gemas by a Cabinet High Impact Projects Committee in September 2006. The project's objective was to meet 40% local beef demands.
The committee, which was chaired by then deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak, included Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who was the Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister at that time.
The Public Accounts Committee had reportedly confirmed that funds were channeled to the corporation between 2008 and 2009, despite the official loan agreement only being signed in 2010.
Shahrizat had on Thursday applied for three weeks' leave from all ministerial duties to allow for a full investigation by the MACC, following repeated calls for her resignation from various quarters.
Najib had also on Saturday announced that NFC's assets has been temporarily frozen, pending the outcome of the MACC's probe.
Mahfuz however questioned whether the move to freeze NFC's assets is enough to ensure that all lost funds can be recovered.
He said the government should also freeze the assets of NFC's Board of Directors, alleging that funds allocated for the project had been invested in other personal ventures.
NFC chief executive Wan Shahinur Izmir Salleh had in a statement over the weekend insisted that the freeze has not impacted the company's daily operations.
Source : The Sunndaily
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