KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 — Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar has been called by Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to answer its inquiry into the management and finances of the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRD Corp).

PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin also chastised two news portals for carrying unverified reports citing anonymous sources about the issue.

“Today I received an online news article from FMT dated today, which stated ‘Sivakumar to appear before PAC on Monday, says source’ but it’s incorrect as I informed the media today that it should be ‘appear on Thursday, November 2.’ I hope all parties take note of this.

“I would like to clarify to the media that all PAC proceedings are subject to the Standing Order 85 of the Dewan Rakyat and information obtained is under the Official Secrets Act 1972,” she told reporters at the Parliament.

“With regards to that, I am disappointed with the actions of Scoop news portal on October 24, which published an article titled ‘PAC bimbang kurang pemantauan dalam HRD Corp’ using unverified sources,” she added, referring to the Malay title that can be translated as “PAC worried over lack of oversight within HRD Corp”.

She was referring to news portals Free Malaysia Today (FMT) and Scoop.

She said that the matter clearly violated Standing Order 85 which states the evidence taken before any Parliamentary Select Committee and any documents presented to such committee shall not be published by any member of such committee, or by any other person, before the committee has presented its report to the House.

She further added that the media should be more responsible in obtaining news from credible sources.

According to Mas Ermieyati, the decision to summon the witnesses — a Finance Ministry representative in HRD Corp and Sivakumar — was due to their names being mentioned in the initial proceedings, and to ensure fairness.

The committee conducted proceedings related to the Management of the Training Fund and the Effectiveness of the HRD Corp on October 23, 2023 by summoning Human Resources Ministry deputy secretary-general (Policy and International) Datuk Amran Ahmad and HRD Corp chief executive officer Datuk Shahul Dawood.

Mas Ermieyati said the PAC is finalising a report on Mindef’s ‘Littoral Combat Ship capable Second Generation Patrol Vessel’ procurement project for the Royal Malaysian Navy for the period from June to September 2023.

“PAC is currently in the process of preparing this report, and we anticipate that it will be presented in the meeting,” she said.