Syed Saddiq: Be consistent, don’t silence LCS issue

KUALA LUMPUR: Angkatan Muda Keadilan (AMK) should be consistent in its stance over the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) issue, says Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.

“Don’t change your tune on the LCS issue now that you are in the government,” he told AMK after the PKR youth wing issued a statement on Sunday saying that Syed Saddiq was “shifting goalposts” on the LCS issue.

“Who is actually shifting the goalposts?” said Syed Saddiq.

“The people currently suggesting action be taken against me for bringing up the LCS issue in Parliament are the same ones who called for it to be brought up as an emergency motion in Parliament before the 15th General Election (GE15).

“They are the same people who campaigned that the LCS issue was worse than the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.

“They also didn’t wait for debates or investigations on the LCS project, but instead said, ‘if we win, we will throw those guilty into jail’,” the Muar MP told a press conference in Parliament yesterday.

Syed Saddiq said he had not made any such accusations, but instead merely requested for due process to be followed and for the LCS issue to be debated in Parliament.

He added that it was not right for debates on the LCS issue to be silenced, stressing that it was a matter of public interest.

“Initially, the project cost RM9bil, then RM11bil and now RM11.2bil, with the number of ships also reduced.

“Before GE15, it was said that action will be taken, but now it’s something else.

“Let’s be fair about this. The LCS issue was constantly raised before, during and after the election,” he said.

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul rejected Syed Saddiq’s motion to debate the LCS project in Parliament on the basis that there was no clear reason on why the issue was of public interest, nor was it a pressing matter.

To this, Syed Saddiq said his initial letter to the Speaker had contained specific points on the matter.

“My reasons were not broad topics like the economy or leakages but rather why the LCS was a matter of public interest,” he said.

He added that he was also not in Dewan Rakyat when Johari spoke on the matter last Thursday as he was attending a Parliamentary Special Select Committee (Nation Building, Education and Human Resource Development) meeting.

On that day, Johari said the Muar MP’s statement that he rejected the motion to debate the LCS issue was unfair.

“In paragraph four of my letter to Muar regarding his motion, it was clearly stated that the motion did not abide by Standing Orders 18(7)(C) as I was informed that the Defence Ministry was required to present LCS progress reports to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) every three months until the project is completed.

“PAC has also made the decision to conduct a site visit in Lumut, Perak and carry out further proceedings.

“Why can’t we wait for the PAC reports before discussing it?” Johari told the Dewan Rakyat.