MP Wee asks Finance Ministry to clarify RM2.1 billion spending gap in rural development ministry

In the Dewan Rakyat, MP Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong called for a detailed clarification from the Finance Ministry regarding a RM2.1 billion discrepancy between the Rural and Regional Development Ministry’s approved budgets and its actual expenditures for 2023-2025. He pointed out that the ministry’s spending exceeded its allocations each year, which could lead the public to suspect embezzlement if not properly explained.

The Finance Ministry had previously reported that the ministry had overspent on rural road projects for four consecutive years, causing payment delays to contractors as its current-year funds were nearly exhausted. Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Johan Mahmood Merican attributed the delays to this overspend. Wee emphasized that any allegation of misappropriation should be based on facts, not merely on budget differences, and that changes in project costs require transparent justification. On 2 September, the Finance Ministry issued its statement, and on 6 October MP Chong Zhemin lodged a complaint with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, requesting an investigation into Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s responsibility for the spending.