“They are very old engines... they are not state-of-the-art. So, it is not of strategic asset to the nation. It is not as though they are Sukhoi or F-18 engines.”
Ladies and gentlemen, that’s your prime minister (and defence minister when these “non-strategic” engines were stolen) talking.
The callousness of the statement simply beggars belief. It’s like saying that old fighter jet engines going walkabout from under the RMAF’s noses is about as serious as someone making off with a box of pencils from the Sungai Besi Air Force base.
In that vein, you could also say that the Port Klang Free Zone scandal isn’t really that big a deal. It’s not like the country can’t afford to flush RM12 billion down the drain. We can always shake Petronas down for more loose change.
Or that Teoh Beng Hock’s mysterious death while being interrogated by the MACC isn’t really a vital issue. After all, it’s just one guy; it’s not as if tens or hundreds of people are dying at Plaza Masalam.
And you know what? Teoh wasn’t even anyone important. An aide to a state assemblyman? Please. Wake me up when somebody of note kicks the bucket.
So far, it looks as though the entire debacle is done and dusted. Stolen engines found? Check. The two guys who nicked the engines? Check.
The investigation as to how and why a security breach of this magnitude was allowed to happen? Say what?
Little wonder then that Datuk Zahid Hamidi has now said that the case involving army personnel leaking the country’s secrets to foreign embassies has been closed on orders from the Prime Minister’s Office.
After all, it’s not as though national secrets are anything more than squiggly lines printed on pieces of paper.
* This article is the personal opinion of the writer or publication. The Malaysian Insider does not endorse the view unless specified.
[Source: The MalaysianInsider]
Now let's see ......
1. Losing Pulau Batu Puteh to Singapore is no big deal as it is just a rock and we still have many islands.
2. The murder of Altantuya is no big deal as she was not someone significant enough to have an impact our relationship with Mongolia.
3. The drop in university ranking is no big deal as we have our own set of standards.
4. Losing our national secrets is no big deal as we are not a military power and do not pose a threat to anyone.
5. The Malays are losing their competitive edge is no big deal as UMNO is always there to prop them up.
6. Entering and spying in Catholic Churches are no big deals as we want to prevent Muslims from being converted to Christianity.
7. Demolishing Hindu temples and then throwing their holy statues in a pit is no big deal as they are occupying a plot of land illegally.
8. The population of illegal immigrants in Sabah is now more than the locals is no big deal as it helps to boost the economy of the state.
When you have pea-brain leaders, you get pea-brain reasons for everything. As far as the fighter jet engines are concerned, it is not so much whether they are of old or new technology, but HOW did it get past the air force base gates in Sungei Besi to finally leave our shores for Uruguay. If two engines could be shanghaied out of the country without anyone knowing, one can just imagine what other items, this time of very strategic value to the country, can be taken out. It is indeed very scary when our leaders demonstrate such nonchalant attitude to a breach in national security.
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