Pairin: Allegedly embezzled funds came from Federal-level ministry

KOTA KINABALU: The state government had nothing to do with the RM3.3bil federal allocations as it was directly channelled to the state water department from the Federal-level Rural and Regional Development Ministry.

"I understand that this particular RM3.3bil worth of federal projects allocated since 2010 is under the Rural and Regional Development Ministry, which my ministry does not handle," Sabah infrastructure development minister Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan (pic) said in a second statement issued Friday.

Pairin, whose state-level ministry also oversees the state water department, said the allocations were directly channelled to the department as the implementing agency without his ministry's knowledge.

Pairin said the procurement of the projects as well as the payments were handled by the Federal-level ministry and the state water department.

"In light of this development, my ministry will study and propose an appropriate reporting system, which will put the ministry in the loop," he said.

He said that his ministry would provide full assistance to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC), which is investigating the department's director and deputy director for allegedly amassing more than RM115mil through kickbacks from contracts.