KUALA LUMPUR, 4 Feb: The Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Strategy Director, Rafizi Ramli, revealed irregularities in the 1Azam Scheme ran by the Women, Family and Community Development.
Rafizi said that the Annual Report 2011 stated that the government spent RM690 million between 2010 and 2011 for the poverty eradication programme.
He said that he received complaint of fraud since 2012 and took place in two ways and as an example of claims for apparatus amounting to RM5,000, but the actual price was RM2,500.
“The RM2,500 difference from the claims were divided between a number of people involved.
“The price of aid equipment was far lower than the claims made to the government because suppliers had to pay back the difference between the actual price and claims made by certain officials in the ministry,” he said, quoted from Keadilan Daily at a press conference at the PKR Headquarters today.
Rafizi said that the second means of fraud was made when aid equipment did not reach the households of the poor, and were instead sent to the local Wanita Umno leadership.
“But I was relieved when the MACC arrested several individuals associated with the Yayasan Sayang Malaysia which was specially established for the implementation of the 1Azam scheme,” he said.
He said that Yayasan Sayang Malaysia is a limited by guarantee company and not much information was obtained.
“Except that its director was Datuk Suhaimi Ibrahim, the former political secretary to Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil. There was political intervention that prevented some people from being investigated due to suspicion of embezzling public funds under the 1Azam scheme.
“The MACC has collected data, but is hiding it form the public. Looks like the government is not transparent with projects undertaken and used the names of the poor to enrich a few people,” he said.
