The announcement that the Federal government will buy this aircraft and, presumably, deploy it in Sarawak (a project likely to meet with every possible obstruction from the GPS administration) comes as some of the last tranche of tropical forest in the State is handed over by arch villain Taib to his son! One supposes it may make a record of the appalling damage done to Sarawak by the criminal Taib gang but that will be of little use, apart from prosecution evidence when MACC get round to prosecuting the Sarawak criminals.

What this purchase does do is demonstrate how little joined up thinking there is in Putrajaya. Even a small enquiry before purchase would have disclosed the actual position and, perhaps, saved these millions for something more practical.

It also demonstrates that there is little or no accepted agreement in Kuala Lumpur about the criminal activities of the Sarawak State administration. Fifty years on it is time, and past time, to wake up.