MP SPEAKS | I refer to a media report where Works Minister Fadillah Yusof announced that the federal government has approved plans to build three new highways namely the PJD Link, the Bangi-Putrajaya Expressway (BPE) and KL Node.

Following this announcement, I address the following questions to the Public-Private Partnership Unit (Ukas), a unit under the Prime Minister’s Department (JPM), the Works Ministry (KKR), the Transport Ministry (MOT), and some specific questions for the concession company for the BPE.

Questions for Ukas

1. What is the estimated cost for the construction of each of these announced highways?

2. Who are the concessionaires for each of these highways and were these concessions selected through open tender? If the open tender method was not chosen, what are the qualifications of these concession companies that enabled them to be appointed by Ukas to implement these highway projects? Do these concession companies have the experience and a strong track record to give confidence to Ukas that they will be able to implement these projects well?

3. How much government grants have been allocated for each of these highway projects? What is the basis of these allocations?

4. Will a “soft loan” also be offered to these companies by the government (Ukas or the Finance Ministry) and if so, how much for each highway?

5. What are the terms and conditions in the concession agreement, including whether the toll rate will be increased within a stipulated time and the compensation to be paid by the government if the toll rate is not increased?

Specific questions for the BPE

What is the track record of the BPE concessionaire in highway construction and operations? Based on the briefing given to me, the name of the concessionaire for BPE is “Bangi Expressway Sdn Bhd”.

A review of the records of the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM), Bangi Expressway is 100 percent owned by MIL-TECH Sdn Bhd. Upon investigation, I found that the shareholders of MIL-TECH Sdn Bhd are the same as the shareholders of MIL-TECH International which were alleged by former Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli in 2016 to have sold a building in Perth, Australia, to the Malaysian government at an inflated price.

I could not find any other information that shows that the company “MIL-TECH Sdn Bhd” has the experience and track record in the construction and operations of any highway in Malaysia or abroad.

Questions for KKR

What is the estimated traffic flow for these three highways? Can KKR provide public access to all traffic flow studies that have been done as evidence that these highways can really reduce traffic congestion in the areas involved?

Questions for the MOT

Were bus rapid transit (BRT) routes considered as an alternative to the highways for these three routes?

Specific questions for BPE

Will the BPE use the route previously proposed for the Kajang-Putrajaya rail project? What is the current status of this project and why is it not given a higher priority compared to the proposed BPE highway?

Questions for the BPE concessionaire

1. What will happen to the National River Trail (Denai Sungai Kebangsaan) project in Sungai Langat outside UKM, which runs along part of the proposed BPE highway route?

2. What steps can be taken to assure the residents on the side of the highway, especially in Section 3, Bandar Baru Bangi, that noise and dust from cars on the highway can be reduced to a level that will not disturb the nearby residents?

3. How many houses need to be demolished and how much compensation will be paid to homeowners in areas where land acquisition needs to be done for this highway, especially in Kampung Sungai Tangkas?

4. Is the concession company ready, together with KKR, to give a general briefing to the residents of Semenyih, Kajang and Bandar Baru Bangi to hear the opinions of the people in these areas on this project?

These highway projects which have been proposed will have a long-term impact on the landscape, way of life and rate of development in the areas involved.

The process for approving such a project should not be done in a hurry but instead needs to be done transparently in terms of information disclosure and openness in terms of public discussion.

ONG KIAN MING is Bangi MP.

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