PUTRAJAYA: The cost of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s recent working and official visits abroad was borne by the government and not paid by private firms, says Fahmi Fadzil.
The Communications Minister said matters such as accommodation, meals and ground transport for the government delegation were managed and paid for by the government, or event organisers, for events such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) and G20 meetings.
“So there is no issue of accommodation, meals or flights being paid for by private firms,” he told a post-Cabinet press conference here yesterday.
As for the business delegation that joined the Prime Minister’s trip, they were also fully funded by their respective companies, said Fahmi.
The participation of the businessmen, he added, showed the deep interest of Malaysian companies in the trade and investment opportunities in the countries visited.
Fahmi also noted that the government saved nearly RM1mil by opting for a private chartered flight for the Prime Minister’s recent working and official visits abroad.
The cost of using the Malaysia Airlines Airbus A350 came up to RM6.162mil.
“Of this, the government paid RM1.662mil or 27% of the amount. The business delegation covered the remaining RM4.5mil.
“By chartering the special flight, the government saved over RM900,000 compared to using the government aircraft,” added Fahmi.
On Thursday, Anwar told the Dewan Rakyat that the government had implemented a new strategy to minimise expenses during official visits overseas.
He said private companies involved in the trade aspects of working visits would pay about 75% of the total travel cost.
He said the government supported these companies in importing or exporting and they, in turn, helped with the travel expenditure.
However, the Opposition has called for transparency, out of concern that corporate interests could influence government decisions and erode public trust.
Anwar returned on Wednesday after visiting Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Peru and Brazil from Nov 9 to 19 to strengthen strategic cooperation and generate investments for Malaysia.
He also led the Malaysian delegation to the 31st Apec Economic Leaders’ Week in Peru and the G20 Summit in Brazil.
Fahmi also said the Prime Minister’s daughter Nurul Izzah was invited to join the government delegation during a recent overseas trip in her capacity as chairman of the Social & Economic Research Initiative think tank.
He added that Nurul Izzah and Institute of Strategic and International Studies chairman Datuk Prof Dr Mohd Faiz Abdullah were invited by the organiser.
