KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2 — Putrajaya’s effort to undertake RM444.6 million worth of upgrades and reparations to national schools nationwide were progressing far below expectations, with only 39 to 55 per cent of the funds spent as of December 2012 a federal audit revealed today.

The 2012 Auditor-General’s Report also found that 25 out of the 26 projects under the Education Ministry’s “Special Project” were not completed as scheduled.

Some of the upgrades and construction work were found to be unsafe, aside from being flawed in design.

“We found the general management of the Special Project to be unsatisfactory as the overall performance of its spending and progress as of December 2012 achieved only 39.5 and 55.1 per cent,” read the report.

The “Special Project”, headed by the Education Ministry’s Special Project Unit, was set up under the Ninth Malaysian Plan after visits to national schools nationwide found most of them lacking facilities like halls, teachers office, toilets and proper sports fields.

The ministry then undertook 350 upgrading and reparation projects involving 27 school halls, 91 offices for teachers, 161 toilets and 71 field upgrades with RM444.69 million allocated for the years 2011 and 2012 in total.

The third batch of the A-G Report found that the overall management of the project is poor.

The report noted discrepancy in payments to consultants for the project — where the ministry had paid consultancy fees to five different consultants, even before the letters of acceptance were issued.

Other weaknesses highlighted were projects being repeatedly delayed, weak contract management allowing contractors to execute the project unbound, which left government interests exposed.

In the response section of the report, however, the ministry defended the move:

“The payments to the consultants were made in the interest of the government to precipitate the upgrade of school facilities which would ultimately lead to the improvement of its performance”.

The A-G recommended that payments made should be backed up with complete official documents.

Federal audits have often revealed discrepancies in payment methods involving government projects.

Opposition leaders have called for stern action but the government has yet to prosecute anyone despite the audit’s findings.

Last month, Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission chief Tan Sri Abu Kassim Mohamed recommended that Parliament enact a law to give his anti-graft outfit the power to prosecute negligent officers following the findings of the 2012 A-G Report.