The Communications and Multimedia Minister, Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek wants live television coverage of his appearance before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to prove himself right and the Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang wrong over the expenses of the K-Pop concert last year.

Shabery had challenged the 2012 Auditor-General’s Report that the K-Pop concert, which was part of the mammoth 2012 Hari Belia celebrations, had cost the government RM1.6 million, claiming that the auditor-general was “culas” (not diligent) in the audit and did not take into account the RM20 million in sponsorship raised.

Strangely, the current Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin also said the government paid for the concert, but was forced to do so because sponsorship pledges fell through.

Shabery should be given the opportunity of live telecast of his testimony before the PAC on the Auditor-General’s 2012 Report on the government expenditure of RM1.6 million for the K-Pop concert, when the Ministry had claimed right from the beginning that the cost of bringing in the three K-Pop groups – U-Kiss, Teen-Topo and Dal*shabet – was borne through sponsorship. Read the rest of this entry »