KUALA LUMPUR: The release of  the Position Review of Port Klang Free Zone Project and Port Klang Free Zone Sdn Bhd (PKFZ report) yesterday is only a small part of the job that needs to be done, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat.

“We need to seriously act on the findings of the report to make sure that the interests of the people are fully protected and that this government walks the talk,” he said in a blog posting yesterday.

Ong, who is also MCA president, said he had directed the Port Klang Authority (PKA) to seek legal recourse for contractual shortcomings or irregularities as well as to seek professional advice on the restructuring of PKA’s financial obligations.

He said PKA should improve and tighten governance at its management and board levels, and must beef up the day-to-day management of PKFZ to strengthen operations and improve financial returns.

“I have also directed the chairman of PKA Datuk Lee Hwa Beng to submit a copy of the report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC),” he said, adding that the transport ministry was not only committed to release the report but determined to ensure it seeks all possible remedies within its jurisdiction.

The cabinet agreed to release the PKFZ report yesterday. Last week, Lee had said that all technical issues were resolved, but stressed that the power to make the PKFZ report public was in the hands of the cabinet.

The transport minister had initially ordered the PKFZ report to be released before May 7 but the deadline lapsed because PKA sought its board’s approval to issue a letter of indemnity to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) which conducted the audit. PKA also convened an emergency board meeting to obtain its members’ approval for the report to be released.