Suaram shooting themselves in the foot.

KUALA LUMPUR: Human rights group Suaram was asked to be transparent regarding funds collected during the Scorpene 2.0 fundraising dinner last month.

One of blog posts raised questions as to how the fund was managed especially in the light of allegations that Suaram unregistered with the Registrar of Society (ROS).

A blog post at MyKMU.net questioned: “This raises a question - if it (Suaram) is not even registered, where did the funds collected during the fundraising dinner go? How was it channelled, kept and managed?”

The blog pressed further on the Scorpene fund,  asking: “We now know there is no trial on the Scorpene (issue), no one is subpoenaed and the investigation conducted is against the French politician who might be involved in corruption relating to DCNS (the French company).”

“So how much has been spent on a "non-case" case? Secondly, where did the remaining funds go? This needs to be clarified because the money is collected from the public.”

The blog post criticised Suaram further for its lack of transparency in managing the fund, when the group has been consistent in highlighting and questioning Barisan Nasional government’s transparency and integrity.

“They (Suaram) have been collecting money without any audit on how the money is spent. Is this what it called transparency and accountability?”

Bernama reported Jaringan Melayu Malaysia (JMM) president Azwanddin Hamzah claimed Suaram was not an NGO but a registered private company under the name of Suara Inisiatif Sdn Bhd.

Azwanddin reportedly said: “According to documents from SSM (Companies Commission of Malaysia), the shareholder and the director of this company are Yeoh Seng Guan and Kua Kia Soong whose appointment was taken on June 7, 2004.”

He also alleged that Suaram was not even registered with ROS as an NGO.

Efforts to contact Suaram’s director Cynthia Gabriel for clarification yesterday were unsuccessful.

Previously The Mole highlighted a blog post which described the opposition and Suaram’s resorting to “made-up stories and illogical arguments” in their attempts to implicate the Malaysian Government in the so-called Scorpene submarine scandal, will only end up "shooting themselves in the feet".

The blog post at Another Brick in The Wall stated: “The opposition has fallen into a state of decline. Their allegations are poorly substantiated, void of facts, sensationalised with lies and made-up stories, and illogical arguments”.  

The blogger noted the relative lack of coverage of the Scorpene issue in international media and said the Government may be staying quiet on the issue because revelations about Suaram’s allegations – as well as about its funding and opposition ties – equate to Suaram shooting themselves in the foot.