KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said it has discovered five cases of fraud in government procurement that cost Putrajaya RM20 million, according to a news report today.

Local daily New Straits Times (NST) reported that MACC Kuala Lumpur is expected to soon haul in high-ranking civil servants in their investigations.

“In the first three months of this year, we uncovered cases which caused the government to lose RM20 million,”  MACC KL director Datuk Seri Ahmad Khusairi Yahaya told NST.

He reportedly said 114 reports have been lodged with MACC KL involving false claims amounting to some RM31 million over the past five years.

According to the MACC official, corruption in government procurement involved procurement officers receiving commissions, leaking the value of the contract to bidders, plagiarising proposals submitted by other companies, and getting other companies to join in the tender process with higher bids.

The NST reported that those under investigation were suspected to have colluded with suppliers to get quotations and to confirm the receipt of goods, even though the deliveries were incomplete or did not meet specifications.

“They will usually ask for five to 10 per cent of the project value. The percentage of commission sought will be set lower if the project value is high,” Khusairi was quoted saying, referring to the corrupt practise of procurement officers demanding commissions.