Warisan calls for White Paper, audit on Sabah GLCs
KOTA KINABALU: Warisan is urging the Sabah government to table a Cabinet-level White Paper to address the underperformance of several government-linked companies (GLCs) and state agencies in Sabah.
Warisan secretary-general Datuk Loretto Padua Jr the White Paper would allow concerned Sabahans to know what led to the underperformance and what the state government plans to do about it.
He added that transparency is needed, saying: "The best watchdogs in this state are the people of Sabah themselves, not those appointed by the Chief Minister from the ruling party or coalition."
"Prudent spending must be emphasised and all unnecessary overseas trips must be stopped immediately," he said in a statement on Monday (May 26) adding that if Warisan was given the mandate to govern, they would table a White Paper in the State Assembly within six months.
He said the White Paper would address matters such as the RM5bil in non-performing loans at Sabah Development Bank and its use of "creative accounting"; the cancellation of Sabah Forest Industries concession land and its reallocation to peninsula-based companies; the water and electricity supply crises including exorbitant charges by private tanker contractors; and the RM1.2bil bailout of Sabah International Petroleum via a RM900mil Sukuk Wakalah issuance by SMJ Energy Sdn Bhd.
It would also cover unresolved GLC-related issues previously raised by Warisan and other Opposition parties, which Loretto said were never addressed by GRS-Pakatan Harapan in the state assembly.
He also said Warisan would also push for detailed investigations by the National Audit Committee into all problematic state agencies and GLCs.
"I believe that a Cabinet White Paper and National Audit Committee investigations are the first steps towards improving the performance of GLCs and state agencies," he said.
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