It’s very disappointing that some Umno-Baru politicians will never learn.

They are firmly stuck in their ways, and have developed bad habits, or a “tidak apa” mentality which cannot be easily undone.

So, when a politician tells Malaysians that there is “no point talking about history,” that person really needs to question his own grip on reality.

This is precisely what the new Defense Minister, Mohamad Hasan, told reporters on December 10.

As expected of many Malaysian politicians, Mohamad is wrong.

At a press conference, Mohamad said he would soon be briefed on the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) project to obtain a clearer picture of the multi-billion ringgit project.

He wanted to study the background of the delays surrounding the project, and have a better understanding of the issues involved.

He said, “We will ensure that the ships are built; no point talking about history.”

Ironically, Mohamad failed to appreciate that being briefed and studying the delays and issues all have a historical context.

The problem with Mohamad is that he has been a politician in Umno-Baru for many decades, and he knows no other political party environment.

The minute he was forced to work with politicians from other parties in Anwar Ibrahim’s “unity government,” he revealed himself as being out of touch with the sentiments of the people.

Mohamad must understand that history will give us a chance to learn from other peoples’ past mistakes. History shows us that events in the past have consequences. Crucially, how things were done then, will shape the things of today.

It is only from history and learning from the past that we not only learn about ourselves, but will also develop the ability to avoid the costly mistakes, and therefore help create a better society.

For example, if former prime minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad had been censured for his cronyism, we would not have several businessmen holding various Approved Permits (APs) from rice to communications to cars.

If the convicted felon Najib Abdul Razak had been called out for his corruption in the 1MDB scandal, the country would not have been shouldering such a huge debt.

If racist politicians like the Menteri Besar of Kedah was punished for his incendiary racist and religious comments about non-Malays and non-Muslims, Malaysians would think twice about making life unpleasant for ordinary folks who are neither Malay nor Muslim.

Similarly, if the ministers and senior officials at the Ministry of Defence had been investigated and charged for bribery and corruption, then we would not be hemorrhaging billions of ringgits to corrupt vendors, fake companies and politicians.

If Mohamad Hasan really wants to get to the bottom of the LCS scandal, he must take up an interest in history!

History is important. The LCS project is the latest scandal involving the Ministry of Defense.

It involves huge sums of taxpayers’ money. RM6 billion has already been paid to the contractors for five out of six LCS vessels. The money has disappeared, and none of the ships are ready.

Successive defense ministers have milked the ministry dry.

Many other multi-million ringgit projects have gone the same way as this LCS project. The rakyat’s money has been paid, but the goods have not been delivered.

In some cases, the goods that arrived were of poor quality and probably not worth the paper the contract was signed on.

Many of the projects were allegedly awarded to those with close ties to the minister or prime minister.

If an exposé of the scandal were to be leaked to the press and public, the authorities would often make a mock show of investigating the allegations.

In many cases, only the small fry are caught and punished while the big sharks responsible for the corruption are allowed to escape.

In other words, no one is really punished.

When others see how easy it is to manipulate the system, more crimes and scandals proliferate.

History is important, because it will show us how various politicians will have cut deals with their cronies, some of whom are allegedly retired armed forces officers who have become defense contractors.

History will have shown that billions of ringgits of taxpayers’ money will have been used for military hardware, not because our armed forces require the equipment, but more probably because prices of the items can be easily marked-up and hefty commissions earned.

This is what happened with the Scorpene submarines. Who was punished for this scandal? No one.

It is time for Mohamad to take up an interest in history. If he really wants to get to the bottom of the LCS scandal, he should ask Najib, Zahid, or Hishammuddin Hussein who signed the contract in 2014 when he was the minister of defense.

Try Hishammuddin first as his memory should be the freshest.

Then do something about banning direct negotiations with companies.

He should stop politicians overturning the Navy’s original request. After all, the Navy is the end user.

He could also prevent fake companies with non-existent services from siphoning millions of ringgits. Doesn’t anyone in government scrutinize these fake companies?

If Mohamad aims to be a problem-solver, punish the people who set up fake companies. It may work as a deterrent.

Catch the big fish, and not just the ikan bilis.

Sources:

1. Malaysiakini: LCS project to proceed but subject to review – Tok Mat
2. The Edge Markets: Rafizi: Offshore firm siphoned RM192 mil from LCS project, modus operandi same like 1MDB

(Mariam Mokhtar is a Freelance Writer.)