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KUALA LUMPUR: Dewan Rakyat President Datuk Azhar Azizan Harun advised an opposition MP to calm down to avoid a “heart attack” during a heated exchange in Parliament on Tuesday (November 24).
The incident occurred when Transport Minister Datuk Seri, Dr. Wee Ka Siong, was clarifying the government’s decision on the Klang Valley Double Tracking Phase 2 (KVDT2) rehabilitation project, but was repeatedly interrupted by former Transport Minister Anthony Loke (PH-Seremban).
“Yang Berhormat, please calm down, if not, you will have a heart attack.
“Let the minister continue his explanation,” Azhar said in reference to Loke’s constant interruptions, accusing Dr. Wee of misleading the House.
Dr Wee had reminded Loke that it was during his tenure as Transport Minister that he informed the Cabinet in September 2018 that the KVDT2 project would cost less if conducted through open tender.
Dr Wee said that Loke had conveniently forgotten that he had told Cabinet in July 2019 that the project would be awarded to Dhaya Maju LTAT Sdn Bhd (DM-LTAT) through direct negotiations.
He also said that Loke knew that Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) had written to the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Finance in July 2019 expressing concern about the project if it was awarded to DM-LTAT through direct negotiations.
On the current government’s decision to terminate the contract with DM-LTAT, Dr. Wee said this was done after the cabinet deliberated on the matter.
It said this included confirmation from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on September 2 that the previous administration had not followed procurement procedures in awarding the KVDT2 contract.
Loke continued to intervene, accusing him of lying and deceiving the House.
“If there is any element of lies, I will resign my position,” replied Dr. Wee.
He then challenged Loke to repeat his accusations outside Parliament.
“I will certainly take legal action to clear my name,” he said, adding that Loke should heed the words and stop speaking as a representative of the company involved in the legal dispute.
Dr. Wee said that he has since filed a report against the allegations made against him regarding the project.
In 2017, the management of Barisan Nasional (BN) awarded the project to DM-LTAT, but the contract was canceled after the change of government in May 2018.
However, the Pakatan Harapan government subsequently decided to award the project to DM-LTAT after a reduction in scope and costs.
DM-LTAT filed a lawsuit against the current government this year after its contract with the project that would be put out to tender was terminated.
On November 6, the Prime Minister’s Department Minister Takiyuddin Hassan said that the government is seeking an out-of-court settlement with DM-LTAT.
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