Dr Wee asks if minister sought to award RM1.4bil contract via direct negotiation

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong (pic) wants Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub to explain why he recently sought to award a contract worth RM1.4bil to the National Farmers Organisation (Nafas).

The MCA president raised the issue when debating the Budget 2020, claiming that the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub made the request to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad recently.

"He wrote a letter to the Prime Minister on Nov 7 during the Tanjung Piai by-election campaign to request the direct appointment of Nafas for agricultural imports in the padi sector to Nafas for a three-year period between 2020 and 2022," Dr Wee said in Parliament on Thursday (Nov 21).

He chided Salahuddin for dragging Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad into such dubious dealings, which Dr Wee said suggested cronyism.

"If you want to challenge this, I am sure there are companies that can come forward to expose the entire thing. Before you answer, please think carefully first," he added.

Earlier, Dr Wee had referred to an advertisement for an open tender placed by the ministry dated July 24, with regard to padi-related subsidies for contracts worth RM52.48mil covering a three-year period.

The Ayer Hitam MP claimed several local companies that had won the open tenders had their tenders cancelled.

"They were waiting to sign the contracts but were suddenly told the tenders had been cancelled as they would now be done through direct negotiation," he said.

He also claimed that the companies that lost the earlier open tender discovered that the contracts were awarded through direct negotiations instead.

"Where is the National Centre for Governance, Integrity and Anti-Corruption (GIACC) now, which is supposed to champion anti-corruption, integrity and transparency?" he added.

Dr Wee said a report has been lodged with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) over the matter.

He also raised the issue of cronyism, claiming that those helming Nafas comprised several Parti Amanah Negara politicians and leaders.

He also questioned the number of hotel rooms booked by Nafas during the recent Tanjung Piai parliamentary by-election campaign period.

Several MPs including Awang Hashim (PAS-Pendang) and Hassan Abdul Karim (PH-Pasir Gudang) also demanded an explanation from Salahuddin.

At the Parliament's lobby, Dr Wee questioned whether the Prime Minister was fed with false information on the issue.

"How can the minister ask the Prime Minister to give an exemption? To be fair, to the Prime Minister, he may not have known the whole issue," said Dr Wee.

He urged the relevant authorities to investigate the matter.