Time for mother of all royal commissions of inquiry

There are many, many mega projects, bailouts and horrendous mistakes of judgement – that have cost taxpayers dearly – which should be investigated, says Wishful Accountant.

I refer to the latest hot potato to have emerged – the call for royal commissions of inquiry to probe 1MDB, BMF and the Bank Negara forex scandal.

But why stop there – I wish to jump on to the bandwagon and call for all major issues and losses of recent times to be investigated by a mother of all royal commissions of inquiry.

I suggest the following should be investigated:

• 1MDB (but of course)
• Bank Negara forex losses adventure
• The BMF scandal and its implications
• The government repurchase of MAS from Naluri at above market price and how much cash has flown away
• The purchase of submarines and the story behind it – and the cash that has sunk with it
• The actual cost of the Bakun Dam project
• How much truth there is in the so-called Malaysian timber scandal
• What happened to all the cash raised by Felda from its IPOs
• How much of Malaysian taxpayers’ hard-earned money was driven away by Malaysia’s ill-fated foray into car production and the continued subsidies and support for it in one form or another
• Why Tabung Haji dividends have been on a downward trend in recent years
• How much the construction of Putrajaya cost and how much the continuing rent is costing
• How much Siltera has consumed
• How much in taxpayers’ cash Perwaja Steel has melted
• The actual bailout cost to taxpayers of the shipping firm MISC
• What happened to all the money collected by Maika
• How much it cost taxpayer for the government to buy out Putra LRT and Star – the predecessor to the current Rapid LRT, which was originally privatised before the government had to step in as the appointed party could not hack it

There are many, many more ego projects, bailouts and horrendous mistakes of judgement – that have cost taxpayers dearly – which should be investigated

As the Malaysian cabinet assumes collective responsibility, the blame cannot be conveniently passed to just one person. That would be preposterous and ridiculous.

Wishful Accountant, who practises his trade, is a keen customer services and rights champion who spends his own time and resources chasing banks, utility providers, highway concessionaires and local councils on various public interest issues. Occasionally, he feels compelled to comment on political and social issues.

The views expressed in Aliran's media statements and the NGO statements we have endorsed reflect Aliran's official stand. Views and opinions expressed in other pieces published here do not necessarily reflect Aliran's official position.

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