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PETALING JAYA: Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong has responded to his predecessor, Loke Siew Fook, continuing tit for tat between the two about the cost of the Klang Valley Double Tracking (Phase 2) or KVDT 2 project.
Noting that Loke had informed Cabinet that the estimated cost of the project could be reduced to around RM3 billion to RM3.5 billion if it was re-bid, Wee asked why the project was then continued at a higher price of RM4 475 billion.
He rejected Loke’s earlier explanation that there would have been compensation and legal consequences if the contract was canceled.
Referring to the minutes of the PH cabinet meeting on September 19, 2018, Wee claimed that the then government had made several U-turns in the project’s consent letter, describing it as a “roller coaster.”
He also said Loke’s argument that PH had successfully reduced the project’s cost by 15% was misleading, arguing that the lower costs and narrower scopes were “two different things.”
“What was found in the 15% cost reduction of the KVDT 2 project proposal was that it was due more to lower scopes of work,” he said today in a statement.
Wee said that the decision of the current PN government to reopen the tender was taken after the input of experts, professionals and companies that had long been involved in the construction of railways.
He urged Loke to be patient and wait for the decision of the open tender for the project, ensuring that the tender price will be less than RM4475 million.
“The reality is that PH, which declared that it would conduct open tenders for project contracts, had not done so during its 22-month rule.
“On the contrary, Perikatan Nasional managed to carry out open tenders and even ordered that the KDVT 2 project be re-tendered on the principle of optimizing the use of public funds for this project.”
The project spans 110 km and includes two KTM rail tracks, one from Salak South to Seremban and the other from a point between Kuala Lumpur Sentral and Angkasapuri to Port Klang.
The ministry’s decision to cancel the project award and reopen it for bidding followed a revelation by finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz that the PH government had awarded 101 projects through direct negotiation.
