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Penang State Government Should Review Its Mega Projects

  • Publication Date | May 31, 2018
  • Document Type | Media Statement
  • Programmes | Development & Planning
  • Issues | Planning, Transport, Urban Development
  • Tags | ECRL, MRT3, Penang South Reclamation, PSR, PTMP
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This is a Consumers’ Association of Penang’s Media Statement (Kenyataan Akhbar) supported by Sahabat Alam Malaysia

The federal government has announced it is reviewing expensive projects in view of the high debts and the need to improve the financial situation.  CAP congratulates the government for this move.  So far the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail project and the Klang Valley MRT 3 project have been cancelled while the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) and other projects are being reviewed.  

CAP congratulates the federal government for these bold and quick moves to save much-needed funds and improve the nation’s finances.

This review of mega projects should not be limited to federal projects.  The same review should be done by state governments, on the same principle of avoiding luxury projects and saving costs to protect the finances of the nation and state and the rakyat’s future.

The Penang state government should review the expensive projects it is involved in, and put them on hold until such a review is completed.

CAP is concerned that the new Chief Minister has made it a priority to speed up the implementation of the state’s expensive projects especially those related to the Transport Plan.  He even hoped that the new Finance Minister, who is the previous Penang Chief Minister, will be able to assist Penang in getting the projects implemented.

With the country going on an austerity drive, there must be a re-prioritising of how the limited funds are spent.  CAP agrees that there should be increased allocations for the most basic projects, especially flood prevention and flood mitigation, rehabilitation of hills and hill-slopes that have suffered from landslides, enlargement of the forest and catchment areas, and improving the coastal environment.   Billions of ringgit are required for these activities, and the federal government should allocate the needed funds to Penang.

However, it appears that the state government is placing higher priority on the group of projects under the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), which together is reported to cost up to RM 46 billion, according to press reports in June last year, which quoted YAB Chow KonYeow, the present Chief Minister of Penang,who was then a State Exco member.

The projects include a RM6.43 billion undersea tunnel and three paired roads; Light Rail Transit (LRT) project; Penang South Reclamation (PSR) including reclaiming land for creating three man-made islands totalling 1,800 hectares; highways; and major development at Gurney Drive.  In addition, there is also a plan for a cable car to Penang Hill with a terminal point at the Botanical Gardens.

From what we know, the projects are very expensive.  One of the planned roads is from Teluk Bahang to Tanjung Bungah at an expected cost of RM1 billion.  The road is only 10.5 kilometers and is expected to save only 14 minutes of car travel time.  It must be one of the most expensive roads in the country if not the world.

The state government claims the PTMP projects will be financed by the private sector. But the state is giving land and land rights (including for reclaimed land) to the private developers.  Moreover, if some of the transport projects are not able to recover the costs for the companies (for example because the number of passengers or the fares are too low), will the government bail them out?

There is insufficient information given to the public on all the components of the PTMP.  The state government must provide all the details on each of the projects, the costs, the financing, the assumptions on passengers and fares or tolls and on the number and prices of housing units to be built by the developers, and the environmental and social impacts.

The costs appear to be very high.  For example, the cost of the feasibility study and design alone is reported to be over RM300 million for the three paired roads.  

There are cheaper alternative ways to improve transport, especially if the focus is on expanding public transport and not cater to private transport.  According to a report in The Star (31 May), public transport experts say that scrapping the MRT3 Line in Klang Valley will allow the government to review the costly project and look for cheaper alternatives.  A transport expert was quoted as saying there are cheaper alternatives including a mix of road, rail and public transport systems that could use buses or trams adapted from world-class cities.

CAP calls on the Penang Chief Minister YAB Chow KonYeow and the state government to:

·         Review the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) with a view to cutting costs and consider alternatives.

·         Put on hold all projects related to the PTMP as well as other luxury and mega projects until the review is completed.

·         Consider alternative plans for transport that focus on public transport and that are cheaper.

·         Give priority to use the limited funds including from the federal government for flood prevention and mitigation, repair of eroded hillslopes and rehabilitation and protection of forests, water catchment areas and coastal resources.

·         Make public the details of all the components of the PTMP including estimates of costs, financing, loans and assumptions of cost recovery.

·         Make public the agreements entered into by the state and local authorities with the developers and proponents of the PTMP and other expensive projects in Penang state.

The former Chief Minister of Penang is now the Finance Minister playing an important role in reviewing federal projects and cutting costs.

Penang should be a model state in also reviewing its projects and cutting costs, and not stand out for going against the national trend.

S.M. Mohamed Idris

President

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Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah satu badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) yang telah sekian lama berjuang mempertahan kelestarian alam. Ia juga mendidik masyarakat tentang pentingnya kebersamaan dalam pemikiran dan tindakan agar alam ini dapat kita wariskan kepada generasi hadapan dalam keadaan yang elok dan terpelihara. Dalam pada itu juga SAM giat membantu golongan nelayan pantai dalam memperjuangkan hak-hak mereka sehinggalah tertubuhnya Persatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING). Nelayan pantai sepenuh masa ini dididik oleh SAM sehingga mereka mampu memainkan peranan sebagai pemimpin nelayan yang meneruskan kesinambungan memperjuangkan hak-hak nelayan pantai lainnya. Sebagai contoh SAM telah berjaya menyedarkan masyarakat nelayan keperluan menjaga hutan paya bakau untuk kebaikan hasil tangkapan nelayan itu sendiri.
Jamaluddin Mohamad Bualik
Jamaluddin Mohamad BualikPersatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Jaringan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING)
During the 1980s, I used to read about the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) in the news. After retirement, some time in 2001, while lazing around, I read news about the construction of a carbon in leach plant using sodium cyanide to extract gold in Bukit Koman. My friends and I visited CAP and we were introduced to SAM and her legal team. We discussed the details of filing a case against the gold mining company and the department of environment with Ms Meenakshi Raman and her legal team. That was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between lawyers from SAM and many of us from Bukit Koman. We had many ups and downs in our struggle to shut down the gold mine that was causing a nuisance in our village. But, as a community we never gave up because SAM had our backs.
Hue Fui How
Hue Fui HowSecretary, Bukit Koman Ban Cyanide in Goldmining Action Committee (BCAC)
Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah sebuah NGO yang memperjuangkan nasib masyarakat luar bandar khasnya. SAM menerima aduan-aduan masyarakat dan menyelesaikan masalah yang dihadapi. SAM telah mewujudkan ramai aktivis-aktivis sosial dan alam sekitar. Pada era 1980 dan 90an SAM sangat dihormati oleh masyarakat dan agensi kerajaan. Apabila media sosial menguasai maklumat maka SAM pun terkesan dan masalah masyarakat terus disalurkan dengan pelbagai cara. SAM perlu mewujudkan aktivis-aktivis pelapis yang muda untuk terus membantu masyarakat. SAM juga perlu membuat perubahan supaya banyak turun kelapangan dan jangan mengharapkan laporan media sahaja. Tingkatkan prestasi sebagaimana pada zaman kegemilangan SAM di era 80-90an.
Che Ani Mt Zain
Che Ani Mt Zain
SAM taught me the importance of social activism and the role it plays in upholding the rights of people and the protection of the environment. In my experience, SAM has never hesitated to speak up in defence of people and their environment, and has gone the extra mile to champion their rights, by helping communities take their battles to the higher ups and even to the courts.
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Jessica BinwaniPublic/Private Interest Lawyer
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My journey with SAM started when her community organisers took me to the meet the paddy farmers of Kedah, connecting my growing interest in environmental law with our people who struggle to work the land in the face of pollution, replacement of traditional seeds with commercial hybrids and their accompanying chemical package of fertilisers and weedicides. I then had the honour to work with SAM in the struggle for the rights of the native communities of Sarawak, in defence of their forests from massive logging and destructive mega-projects. In every issue that SAM takes up, she combines rigorous research with the realities and voices of the communities to advocate for policies and laws that care for people and nature. From the courts to the elected legislators to policy makers and implementers and to the United Nations, SAM walks side by side with the communities in Malaysia. How can I not be inspired by the vision and passion of the generations of women and men who coalesce to form SAM?
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Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Headquarters)
No. 1, Jalan Joki, 11400 Penang,
Malaysia
Tel: +604 827 6930
Fax: +604 827 6932

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Marudi Office)
129A, First Floor,
Jalan Tuanku Taha,
P.O.Box 216,
98058 Marudi, Baram, Sarawak,
Malaysia
Tel & Fax: +6085 758 973

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