The reroute for the second MRT line (MRT2) is yet another case of the government running to 1Malaysia Development Bhd’s rescue, DAP’s Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua said.

Singapore’s Sunday Times yesterday reported that MRT2 will be delayed and cost more because it will be rerouted from densely populated Cheras and Pandan to the 1MDB’s yet to be built Bandar Malaysia.

The realignment will be for the Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya line.

Pua said 1MDB will not only benefit in higher valuation for its project due to the MRT connectivity but may stand to gain more by selling land to the government for MRT2.

"If this were to happen, it would be an absolute travesty because 1MDB secured the Bandar Malaysia land, the current Sungai Besi airbase for a paltry RM75 per square feet," he said in a statement.

"The losers will be the 200,000 middle and lower middle-income earners living in Cheras and Pandan where the original alignment would have passed through."

Pua said that given the value boost Bandar Malaysia will enjoy, 1MDB should give the government land for the MRT construction for free.

1MDB should also be levied a "development charge" to defray the extra costs of rerouting and to provide alternative public transport for Pandan and Cheras dwellers.

Malaysia's second MRT line will be rerouted from a densely populated suburb in the Klang Valley to a new township that is yet to be built, on land belonging to state-owned 1Malaysia Development (1MDB).

Such a move is expected to not only delay completion of the RM25 billion (S$9 billion) line but also incur extra costs for the government. However, it will increase the value of the debt-laden state investment agency's land bank.

The change in plan was revealed by Gamuda, an infrastructure and property conglomerate which, together with fellow infrastructure giant MMC, is the main developer for the MRT project.

At an analyst briefing last Thursday, it said the realignment of the Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya (SSP) line would entail a delay of three to six months and a potential spike in costs.

- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/asia-report/singapore/story/malaysia-re-route-new-mrt-line-20150329#sthash.eeK9ckRk.dpuf

MRT2 contractor Gamuda-MMC told an analyst briefing last Thursday that the reroute would cost three to six months in delays and add to the RM25 billion bill, Sunday Times reported.

it said the realignment of the Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya (SSP) line would entail a delay of three to six months and a potential spike in costs. - See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/asia-report/singapore/story/malaysia-re-route-new-mrt-line-20150329#sthash.eeK9ckRk.dpuf

Such a move is expected to not only delay completion of the RM25 billion (S$9 billion) line but also incur extra costs for the government. However, it will increase the value of the debt-laden state investment agency's land bank. - See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/asia-report/singapore/story/malaysia-re-route-new-mrt-line-20150329#sthash.eeK9ckRk.dpuf
The reroute joins the list of gifts from the government to the debt-laden Finance Ministry firm, Pua said.

This includes multi-billion ringgit power plant projects, land sold at heavily-discounted prices, support letters for US$10 billion in loans and a kitty of RM950 million advance to sort out its loan repayments.

1MDB has RM42 billion in debt with annual financing costs in excess of RM2 billion.