[sustran] fwd: Third Penang Link: Government Funds belong to the People

[SUSTRAN Network Secretariat]

Aliran Media Statement
http://www.malaysia.net/aliran/ms/2000/0317.htm


The Third Penang Link: Government Funds belong to the People
 
"There is no need for public opinion" 
Works Minister Samy Vellu's stand that there is no need to obtain public
opinion on the proposed 2.1 billion-ringgit bridge-tunnel is appalling. His
comments on the project - which would be the third link connecting Penang
Island and the mainland - have laid bare the empty official rhetoric about
being accountable and transparent to the people.

Responding to our earlier statement, Samy Vellu was reported in The Star as
saying, ''This is not a privatised project. This is a government project
and there is no need for public opinion.''

We fail to understand his twisted logic. If this project is really a
government project, then there is all the more reason to consult the
public. Samy Vellu may argue that the Government is going to borrow the
money from overseas to undertake the project. He should then explain how
the foreign loan is going to be repaid. Is the loan going to be repaid from
his pocket? Surely, it will be out of government funds since it is, as he
says, a "government project." 

We would like to remind Samy Vellu and other Barisan Nasional politicians
that government funds belong to the people - not to the Cabinet or the
ruling coalition. So, as citizens and taxpayers, we have every right to be
consulted, especially on major projects. And this is a major project - 2
billion ringgit of public money is at stake here.

Samy Vellu then went off on a tangent, talking about people having no
alternative but to travel by air if there are no proper roads. For good
measure, he talked of developing countries that had razed their forests and
now wanted Malaysia to preserve its forests for the benefit of the world.
We fail to see what forests have to do with the bridge-tunnel project.

First, Samy Vellu must categorically confirm that no private firms will be
involved in this project - whether in the construction or as toll
concessionaires - since this is supposed to be a "government project." Can
he do this?


Next, Samy Vellu should tell the Malaysian public how much the toll rate
will be. Or are we to believe that there will be no toll since this is a
"government project"? 

We don't understand why this project is being rammed down our throats when
the most obvious, easiest, and economically feasible option - to vastly
improve the ferry service - is totally ignored. The money needed to improve
the ferry service - along with improved public transport to and from the
ferry terminals - is peanuts compared with the 2-billion ringgit needed for
a bridge-tunnel. 

So why is this option ignored? Are we expected to believe that the
decades-old ferry service, which collects 7 ringgit in toll, is not viable
but a bridge tunnel, which costs a whopping 2 billion ringgit, is? 

Aliran Executive Committee
17 March 2000