KUALA LUMPUR: The purchase of the 104 faulty Covid-19 ventilators was made during Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba's tenure as the Health Minister.
Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin confirmed this during the committee's weekly press conference in the Parliament building today.
"As everyone is well aware, all this (was done) under (then health minister Dr) Adham Baba.
"YB KJ (former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin) already gave his statement, saying it was not during his time (as the health minister)," she said when asked under whose tenure the defective ventilators were purchased.
This comes after Khairy had distanced himself from the issue.
On Monday, the PAC revealed that no action could be taken over the defective Covid-19 ventilators supplied to the government, following the absence of a written agreement between the Health Ministry and Pharmaniaga Logistics Sdn Bhd (PLSB).
In the report published by the PAC, the committee said PLSB was also instructed to make advance payments for ventilators following its existing relationship with the ministry, despite not having experience and expertise in medical equipment procurement.
The report also mentioned that the procurement of the 136 ventilator units occurred between April 1 to May 19, 2020.