DAP Penang state chairperson Chow Kon Yeow today demanded to know the "real bosses" behind the controversial alignment of the RM1.02 billion Penang Outer Ring Road (PORR) project.

Chow, who is DAP member of Parliament for Tanjung, lamented that it was difficult to obtain information about the highway project because of the lack of transparency on the part of the government.

"I have questioned why an Umno-linked company with no experience in road building was awarded the billion-ringgit project," Chow said in a press statement.

"I was shocked to find out that the concessionaire, Peninsular Metro-Works Sdn Bhd, is only a RM100 paid-up capital company with nothing to show, no business, no account and no record whatsoever," he added.

Chow said Deputy Works Minister Mohd Khalid Noordin had refuted his allegations in Parliament recently and said that the company was selected based on its experience and ability to finish the project in time.

The project, set for completion in 2005, will affect some 172 structures including private homes, places of worship, graves and shoplots.

Critics of the controversial road project unveiled recently by the Malaysian Highway Authority said it could never be the 'answer' to the island's perpetual traffic woes.

Resident groups are also upset that they were not consulted before the state government approved the proposed highway.

The state government instead said it is studying all problems raised by those who oppose the project and will address the criticisms soon.

Worst traffic woes

Meanwhile, Keadilan said that traffic woes are often associated with development but the problem in Penang with the current population of 1.2 million people is worse than those of other cosmopolitan cities like Singapore and Hong Kong.

When contacted, Keadilan Bukit Bendera branch vice-president Raymond Ong pointed out that compared with Hong Kong and Singapore where the population is six million and three million respectively, occurrences of traffic jam in Penang due to excessive usage of private vehicles are "even worse and less justifiable" .

Currently, car ownership of working adults is six persons to a car for Hong Kong, 4:1 for Singapore and 2:1 for Penang, he said.

"However, if we take into account private car usage per person per day, Penang will again top the list. This is not because cars in Penang are cheap but because of the acute shortage of public transport," Ong, who is an engineer, added.

"In Hong Kong and Singapore, using a private car (considering fuel, road tax, insurance and depreciation) is more expensive than using a taxi. In Penang it is the opposite as driving a car is cheaper than using a taxi, riding a motorcycle is also cheaper than using a bus," he added.