Ramon Navaratnam of Transparency International (TI) Malaysia speaks for the rest of the silent Malaysians when he said that the Matrade building project - which had incurred cost overruns and completed nine years behind schedule - was a monument of shame to all Malaysians.

It seems to be a paradox that two long-standing ministers Rafidah Aziz and S Samy Vellu - who are mired in controversies of their own - want the government to investigate why the project was delayed and that the culprits should be punished for their incompetence. Seems to me like the pot calling the kettle black.

Mismanagement and leakage of government funds (read taxpayers' hard-earned monies) has been a perennial problem of ours since day one. Top politicians and big contractors have incestuous relationships to enrich themselves at the expense of the public. These misdeeds are not going to end soon as long as transparency and accountability are not being practiced.

The government is long on rhetoric but short on action and shoddy government contractors seem to be off the hook as far as action against them is concerned.

Our Public Works Department has a very good record for building government assets since the 60s and 70s but ever since privatisation (or rather privatisations) became the mantra under our former premier, one can see a lot of cronies and sycophants becoming instant millionaires.

These people sold their fat contracts to their people down the line for easy money with the result that the quality of work done was compromised in order for these down-liners to make decent profits.

The computer lab fiascos and MRR2 highway defects are some of the symptoms of bigger malaises that have drained public coffers (or made cronies richer by dubious means). How the works minister can still remain in office and not take responsibility for the mishaps that have occurred baffles the minds of the common people.