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PETALING JAYA: The contractor for the Klang Valley Double Tracking Phase 2 Project (KVDT2) is puzzled by the termination of the contract, saying there is no legal or factual justification for it.
Dhaya Maju-LTAT Executive Director Mohamed Razeek Hussain responded to Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong’s statement on the project, saying that it does not accurately reflect or describe the background of the matter.
Last week, Wee said the ministry will reopen the KVDT 2 tender after discovering that the project costs much less than previously cited.
Wee and his predecessor, Loke Siew Fook, have engaged in a war of words over project costs.
In a statement today, Razeek said that Dhaya Maju-LTAT were the duly appointed contractors for the project and received the original award letter on April 4, 2018, for the project under the then management led by Barisan Nasional.
“When the government of Pakatan Harapan took over, the original KVDT2 award ended on October 19, 2018.
“Having accepted that there was no basis to rescind the initial award letter, on July 5, 2019 the Pakatan Harapan government agreed to reappoint Dhaya Maju-LTAT to implement the KVDT2 project and the parties entered into a resolution agreement pursuant to of which the government agreed to issue a new award letter, “he said.
In return, Razeek said, Dhaya Maju-LTAT renounced all his claims against the government for wrongful termination.
The company received a new award letter to continue with the KVDT2 project at a lower contract amount, which resulted from a series of negotiations with all interested parties and technical experts.
“We are therefore shocked and perplexed by the minister’s statement based on some report on the costs of the project that we do not know about,” he said.
Razeek said that all jobs were being monitored by professional consultants and that all claims were reviewed and verified before any approval for payment.
He said that KVDT2 was a key public transport project for the Klang Valley and that any delay caused by the reopening of the tender would bring “incalculable misery” to the public and travelers.
“Until and unless we are formally informed, as a responsible contractor, we intend to continue to meet our obligations under the contract to ensure that the project is delivered on time and without delay.
“We cannot understand why there is a sudden rush to terminate the contract,” he said, adding that the government needed to consider the impact of this on the economy during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Razeek said the company will continue to engage government and stakeholders to ensure the project is not compromised.
