Posted on October 2, 2013, Wednesday
KUCHING:
The Livestock Development Programme managed by the Department of
Agriculture (DOA) has been graded “less than satisfactory” in the
Auditor-General’s Report 2012 despite spending RM53.73 million from 2009
to 2012 to aid livestock breeders in the state.
The report said
that an audit conducted from July to October 2012 revealed the programme
utilised 96.1 per cent of its total allocation but its overall
management was poor and identified seven weaknesses in its
implementation.
A glaring deficiency was the absence of contract agreement for the procurement of livestock. Other
weaknesses were incomplete livestock registration records and poor
management of the livestock station which could have led to low birth
rate but high mortality rate of the cattle.
In reaction to the
audit comment, DOA had conducted a workshop to draft the Standard
Operating Procedure (SOP) for all processes pertaining to livestock
project management and station. The department also initiated some
remedial actions including reviewing the implementation strategy for
the programme; ensuring the signing of contract agreement before
distributing the livestock; proper management of livestock station as
well as proper and updating registration records of livestock.
Apart
from its livestock programme, DOA’s Paddy Industry Development
Programme (PPIP) which also involved Ministry of Modernisation of
Agriculture Sarawak as well as Department of Irrigation and Drainage
(DID) was also deemed “less than satisfactory” in its overall
management. According to the report, PPIP was introduced as a
development strategy to increase productivity and production of rice to
achieve the state’s target of 70 per cent rice self-sufficiency level.
The
report said that under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP), DOA and DID had
spent a total of RM235.03 million or 93.1 per cent out of RM252.48
million allocations received from both the state and federal government
for PPIP.
However, the audit conducted from June to October 2012
showed that the programme failed to achieve the 70 per cent rice
self-sufficiency at the end of 9the Malaysia Plan. The
implementation of PPIP was blighted by impractical project design,
non-compliance of financial procedures in procurement and payment for
weedicides.
DOA also failed to meet the deadline for the
construction of Stumbin Paddy Seeds Production and Processing Centre
(SPPC) which was part of the programme. Meanwhile, the audit of AG
conducted from May to July 2012 also found the overall financial
performance of management of Mayang Tea Sdn Bhd (MTSB) “unsatisfactory”.
MTSB
which is wholly owned by Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation
Authority (Salcra) was initially involved in planting, processing and
marketing of tea on an area of 182.02 ha. However, since November 2011,
MTSB has replaced its tea with oil palm on its former 100 ha of tea
plantation.
MTSB had initiated remedial actions to ensure the
success in its oil palm undertaking which included collecting and taking
actions on the outstanding debts and optimising available resources to
generate economic return to the company
