Selangor executive councillor Dr Hasan Mohamed Ali would like to see proper guidelines to be drawn up for the Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) when questioning government officials on alleged misappropriation of state funds.

He said several district officers, council presidents and top administrative officers in Selangor felt humiliation over the manner Selcat had directed questions at them.

"Many of them complained that they were being questioned for decisions made by ex-politicians, and treated like school kids.

"I want to maintain that I am supportive of Selcat... but we need to refine it as I am a little saddened by the manner in which inquiries are being carried out with regard to civil servants,” added Hasan.

He was speaking to reporters at the Hari Raya open house hosted by Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim near Shah Alam today.

A Malay daily yesterday published an article quoting Klang district officer Bakhtiar Hussin has, among others, accusing Selcat for creating a political drama and bringing shame upon him in an inquiry into misused state allocations, just before the last general election, thus pulling in Hasan to fight his cause.

Bakhtiar said, the manner in which the investigation was done and the reports in the media, had tarnished his image.

Hassan vs Teng over Selcat's role

On Sept 9, Bakhtiar and his officers were questioned over the RM4 million annual allocation for BN constituencies within the district that was used between January and February last year.

Hasan also reiterated that the seven-member Selcat panel must be replaced with an independent committee of eminent persons without political inclination.

He said his demands for an independent inquiry was valid as he expressed dissatisfaction against Selcat's hard questioning tactics when government officers were called in for public hearing.

"All panel members sitting in Selcat are politicians. It's much better when we have experienced and reputable people like ex-judges and ex-secretary generals to sit in Selcat to enhance its credibility," he added.

Reacting, Khalid said he would ensure no one felt slighted but asserted that the public had the right to know Selcat’s findings.

"We can’t undermine Selcat with an independent group as it is not within the framework of the legislative assembly," he said.

Selcat chairman Teng Chang Kim said he was surprised that Hasan was so ignorant about parliamentary practices.

"He (Hasan) must understand that Selcat was created and empowered by the legislative assembly. There has been no parliamentary practice in Commonwealth countries for select committees to be made up of ex-judges," he noted.

- Bernama