LRT extension to cost RM280mil more?

The credibility of the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) has come under scrutiny, in light of the way the contract for the Kelana Jaya LRT extension line has been handled.

Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua (right) pointed to news reports which claimed that the project will now be awarded to a company that put in a bid 50 percent higher than the lowest submitted.

This, he said, has turned the entire process into a sham and will bring the country to disrepute.

Compounding the matter is that the tender exercise had attracted top international firms such as Bombardier, Colas, Thales, Siemens, Invensys and Samsung, among others.

“...They are now finding out that Malaysia will award (the project to) the party which put in the higher or highest bid, and not the lowest,” Pua  said in a statement today.

“The ‘open tender’ (exercise) has wasted millions of ringgit borne by companies that submitted a competitive bid, thousands of man-hours from the private and public sectors and delayed the LRT extension project (for months).”

According to Singapore daily Straits Times, a Finance Ministry committee had initially awarded the project to the Hartasuma Sdn Bhd-Bombardier joint-venture at RM890 million, or 50 percent higher than the lowest bid.

But a separate news report today claimed that the committee has changed its mind and now wants to award the project to a consortium led by British firm Colas which submitted a RM670 million bid - or RM60 million higher than the company recommended by LRT operator Syarikat Prasarana Bhd.

‘Are claims true?’

Pua argued that, if the reports are true, the government has made a mockery out of the so-called “open tender” exercise and should thus scrap the system.

He said he would raise the subject in the Dewan Rakyat during the debate on the Supplementary Supply Bill, if he has the chance to speak.

“The Finance Ministry must confirm if the allegations are true and, if true, account to the rakyat as to why Malaysians must pay RM280 million more for the extension project,” he said.

The RM7 billion extension project mooted in 2004 will extend the Kelana Jaya line by 17km and the Ampang line by 17.7km, adding 13 new stations to each line.        

The Kelana Jaya line extension will have five park-and-ride stations while the Ampang line extension will have seven.