January 04, 2007
For whom the tolls toll?
It's too late to ask who benefit more from the highway concessions given
out under Malaysia's privatisation programmes.
In the case of Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong (LDP) given to Lingkaran Trans
Kota Berhad (Litrak) -- the rakyat from Perlis to Sabah will be screwed
till Year 2031 as nothing could be done to rescind the 33-year concession
it signed with the government.
Never mind that Litrak had announced in their annual reports having
recouped the building cost within some short years in operation. The
government will continue to pay it guaranteed subsidies, and the
increasing volume of traffic will ensure the concessionaires laugh their
way to the bank for 24 years more.
ANTI-TOLL COALITION... Ronnie Liu (DAP), Dr Hatta Ramli (PAS), Tian Chua
and Khalid Ibrahim (KeAdilan)... LensaPress photo
That's the tip of the iceberg revealed at the press conference organised
this morning by Parti Keadilan Rakyat, and attended by leaders of the
anti-toll hike coalition comprising opposition political parties and NGOs.
KeAdilan information chief, Tian Chua, said he and and his party were
prepared to take the risk under the Official Secret Act (OSA) in order to
reveal Litrak's concession agreement with the government to prove that
Works Minister S. Samy Vellu has been lying through his teeth about the
government's obligation to compensate the concessionaire in order to help
lessen road users' burden.
Just 'wayang'
"The truth is all this is just wayang as the government has already
agreed to the toll rates when it signed the concession agreement that is
lop-sided and against the interest of the rakyat," Chua said.
"There's no such thing as the government having negotiations with the
concessionaires because the government was already ready to pay the
stipulated toll rate, and subsequent increases -- based on a formula
stated clearly in the contract."
"For example, when signing the agreement with Litrak, the government has
agreed on your behalf to let Litrak collect RM1.50 for Class 1 vehicles
passing through LDP's PJ Selatan tollgate near Bandar Sunway," Chua added.
"The RM1.50 rate was to come into force from 1998 through 2006. Since you
protested, so the wayang played. The government so-called intervened and
the toll rate was reduced to RM1.00 but Litrak has to be compensated,"
Chua explained.
"Look again, the agreement also states that Litrak is allowed to increase
the toll charge to RM2.10 from 2007 through 2015, and then increase to
RM3.10 from 2016 to the end of the concession period, provided there's no
extension," he added.
"Now, since the Government has agreed to allow Litrak to increase the
toll charge to RM2.10 starting 2007, and since you protest, the wayang
starts again -- it's so-called reduced to RM1.60 but the government again
pays compensation to Litrak."
'Toll and compensation do not reflect building cost'
"But the main issue is this: The toll charges, and the compensation, do
not reflect the actual cost of building the highway, and the amount of
cash Litrak collects from the road users after it has recouped its
building cost," Chua cautioned.
According to public domain information, Litrakfs 2006 annual report
revealed that it recorded a nett profit of RM80 million, an increase of
43% from its nett profit at RM56 million in year 2005.
The report further showed that Litrak had set a new record after
collecting RM243 million revenue for its financial year ending on March
31, 2006, as opposed to RM227 million it collected for the year before.
In other words, it's a nett profit-making company within seven years of
operation since 1998.
Khalid Ibrahim explaining the importance of the Right to Information Act
to tell all to the rakyat pertaining to privatisation projects from
highway to water and independent power producers
Khalid Ibrahim, KeAdilan Treasurer who had experience in building the
Shah Alam-Rawang Guthrie Corridor Highway when he was the Group CEO of
Kumpulan Guthrie, explained that maintenance cost would not exceed 5% of
the total highway costs.
"That goes to show Litrak will be making net profits at the rakyat's
expenses as Samy is on his way to compensate Litrak using the taxpayers'
money," said DAP's Ronnie Liu.
"And bear in mind, though Litrak is located in the Klang Valley, the
money the government used to compensate the concessionaire belongs to
every rakyat, including those from Kelantan who might not use the LDP at
all," Liu added.
During the press conference, the media were given excepts of the
concession agreement signed between Litrak and the Government, which
indicates stamp duty has been paid for the agreement to consumate.
The Press were also given opportunities to inspect its content. The
signatories were clearly displayed, as shown above.
PAS Treasurer Dr Hatta Ramli summarised by saying, "We only obtained one
concession agreement. This one with Litrak could be the worse off for the
rakyat. If the government think the rest are better off than this, then
show us."
"If Litrak is the best of the concessions, then, also show us the rest,"
he added.
There are five highway concessionaires allowed to increase their toll
charges up to 60% starting January 1, 2007. They are: LDP, Shah Alam
Highway, Cheras-Kajang Highway, Kuala Lumpur-Karak Highway and the
Guthrie Corridor Expressway.
For whom the tolls toll?
There's a lot more story behind it... such as the formula the Government
uses to compensate the concessionaires should the toll rates become lower
than those stipulated in the agreement.
And you have to ask the question: For whom and on whom the tolls toll?
The concessionaires? The BN Government and its elite politicians? The
Rakyat?
Meanwhile, the Anti-Toll Coalition will hold a gathering at 4.00pm,
January 7 (Sunday) in front of the Sunway Pyramid shopping complex, where
Litrak office is located nearby, to launch a rakyat's protest against the
toll increase.
Ina separate statement, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang
also called on the public dissatisfied with the toll hikes to participate
in the Sunday protest.
MORE!
January 05, 2007
For whom the tolls toll?... ( 2 )
There's seems to be more to the story when KeAdilan information chief
Tian Chua revealed yesterday that Works Minister S. Samy Vellu has been
lying through his teeth about the government's effort in negotiating, and
compensating, the concessionaire in order to help lessen road users'
burden. Recap:
"There's no such thing as the government having negotiations with the
concessionaires (to reduce the toll charges for road users) because the
government was already agreeable to the stipulated toll rate, and
subsequent increases -- based on a formula stated clearly in the
contract."
"The truth is all this is just wayang as the government has already
agreed to the toll rates when it signed the concession agreement that is
lop-sided and against the interest of the rakyat," Chua said.
Here's the evidence that Chua and KeAdilan Treasurer Khalid Ibrahim
showed the Press yesterday.
SOURCE: Parti KeAdilan Rakyat
In the section titled: Reduction in Toll by Government of the concession
aggreement signed between the Government and Litrak on April 23, 1996,
Page 47, Clause 16.2.1 stipulates that:
In the event that the Government imposes Toll for any class of vehicle
for or during any Concession Year which is lower than the Agreed Toll for
that class of vehicle for that Concession Year then the Government shall
compensate the Concession Company, in respect of the relevant Concession
Year when such action was taken ("the relevant Concession Year"), and for
each Concession Year thereafter during which the decision of the
Government continues to apply by paying to the Concession Company an
amount certified by the Operation Auditors to be calculated in the
following manner:
CA = ‡” [AT x (2 x TV)] - TA
(View picture above for the definitions of the respective acronyms)
The amount of compensation shall be certified by the Operation Auditors
and shall be payable within ninety (90) days from the date of the joint
certificate certifying such amount from the Operation Auditors of the end
of the Concession Year.
As such, the schedular increase in toll rates throughout the 33-year
concession period has been stipulated in the concession agreement as is
summarised as follows:
December 14, Samy was quoted by Bernama as saying that "despite the
Government agreeing to increase toll charges at five highways from
January 1, it still has to fork out a hefty RM2.58 billion in
compensation".
On this, Chua added: "Look again, the agreement also states that Litrak
is allowed to increase the toll charge to RM2.10 from 2007 through 2015,
and then increase to RM3.10 from 2016 to the end of the concession
period, provided there's no extension."
"But the real issue is this: The toll charges, and the compensation, do
not reflect the actual cost of building the highway, and the amount of
cash that Litrak keeps collecting from road users after it has recouped
the construction cost," Chua cautioned.
Samy 'dreaming or suffering from amnesia'?
Meanwhile, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang has refuted Samy
Vellu's claims that the former was once allowed to pour through highway
concession agreements for nine hours without finding any flaws.
He said Samy gmust be dreaming or suffering from amnesiah when he made
the allegations.
Kit said, after having raised strong objections in Parliament during July
1987 on the Letter of Intent offered to then United Engineers Malaysia
Bhd (UEM) to construct the North-South Expressway, Samy offered DAP MPs a
glance at the tender documents.
Kit claimed that the concession agreement was eventually awarded to UEM
in March 18, 1988 and he never got to see it - because he was
incarcerated under the Internal Security Act at that time.
At the press conference yesterday, members of the Anti-Toll Coalition
from PAS and DAP also questioned whether the terms of the concession
agreement that the Government signed with Litrak, which was obtained by
KeAdilan, apply across-the-board to all existing toll concessions
throughout the country in a cookie-cutter methodology.
MORE...
CREDIT: Taken from Autoworld.com.my posted by tWofish.
For your reading consumption.
For whom the tolls toll?
It's too late to ask who benefit more from the highway concessions given
out under Malaysia's privatisation programmes.
In the case of Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong (LDP) given to Lingkaran Trans
Kota Berhad (Litrak) -- the rakyat from Perlis to Sabah will be screwed
till Year 2031 as nothing could be done to rescind the 33-year concession
it signed with the government.
Never mind that Litrak had announced in their annual reports having
recouped the building cost within some short years in operation. The
government will continue to pay it guaranteed subsidies, and the
increasing volume of traffic will ensure the concessionaires laugh their
way to the bank for 24 years more.
ANTI-TOLL COALITION... Ronnie Liu (DAP), Dr Hatta Ramli (PAS), Tian Chua
and Khalid Ibrahim (KeAdilan)... LensaPress photo
That's the tip of the iceberg revealed at the press conference organised
this morning by Parti Keadilan Rakyat, and attended by leaders of the
anti-toll hike coalition comprising opposition political parties and NGOs.
KeAdilan information chief, Tian Chua, said he and and his party were
prepared to take the risk under the Official Secret Act (OSA) in order to
reveal Litrak's concession agreement with the government to prove that
Works Minister S. Samy Vellu has been lying through his teeth about the
government's obligation to compensate the concessionaire in order to help
lessen road users' burden.
Just 'wayang'
"The truth is all this is just wayang as the government has already
agreed to the toll rates when it signed the concession agreement that is
lop-sided and against the interest of the rakyat," Chua said.
"There's no such thing as the government having negotiations with the
concessionaires because the government was already ready to pay the
stipulated toll rate, and subsequent increases -- based on a formula
stated clearly in the contract."
"For example, when signing the agreement with Litrak, the government has
agreed on your behalf to let Litrak collect RM1.50 for Class 1 vehicles
passing through LDP's PJ Selatan tollgate near Bandar Sunway," Chua added.
"The RM1.50 rate was to come into force from 1998 through 2006. Since you
protested, so the wayang played. The government so-called intervened and
the toll rate was reduced to RM1.00 but Litrak has to be compensated,"
Chua explained.
"Look again, the agreement also states that Litrak is allowed to increase
the toll charge to RM2.10 from 2007 through 2015, and then increase to
RM3.10 from 2016 to the end of the concession period, provided there's no
extension," he added.
"Now, since the Government has agreed to allow Litrak to increase the
toll charge to RM2.10 starting 2007, and since you protest, the wayang
starts again -- it's so-called reduced to RM1.60 but the government again
pays compensation to Litrak."
'Toll and compensation do not reflect building cost'
"But the main issue is this: The toll charges, and the compensation, do
not reflect the actual cost of building the highway, and the amount of
cash Litrak collects from the road users after it has recouped its
building cost," Chua cautioned.
According to public domain information, Litrakfs 2006 annual report
revealed that it recorded a nett profit of RM80 million, an increase of
43% from its nett profit at RM56 million in year 2005.
The report further showed that Litrak had set a new record after
collecting RM243 million revenue for its financial year ending on March
31, 2006, as opposed to RM227 million it collected for the year before.
In other words, it's a nett profit-making company within seven years of
operation since 1998.
Khalid Ibrahim explaining the importance of the Right to Information Act
to tell all to the rakyat pertaining to privatisation projects from
highway to water and independent power producers
Khalid Ibrahim, KeAdilan Treasurer who had experience in building the
Shah Alam-Rawang Guthrie Corridor Highway when he was the Group CEO of
Kumpulan Guthrie, explained that maintenance cost would not exceed 5% of
the total highway costs.
"That goes to show Litrak will be making net profits at the rakyat's
expenses as Samy is on his way to compensate Litrak using the taxpayers'
money," said DAP's Ronnie Liu.
"And bear in mind, though Litrak is located in the Klang Valley, the
money the government used to compensate the concessionaire belongs to
every rakyat, including those from Kelantan who might not use the LDP at
all," Liu added.
During the press conference, the media were given excepts of the
concession agreement signed between Litrak and the Government, which
indicates stamp duty has been paid for the agreement to consumate.
The Press were also given opportunities to inspect its content. The
signatories were clearly displayed, as shown above.
PAS Treasurer Dr Hatta Ramli summarised by saying, "We only obtained one
concession agreement. This one with Litrak could be the worse off for the
rakyat. If the government think the rest are better off than this, then
show us."
"If Litrak is the best of the concessions, then, also show us the rest,"
he added.
There are five highway concessionaires allowed to increase their toll
charges up to 60% starting January 1, 2007. They are: LDP, Shah Alam
Highway, Cheras-Kajang Highway, Kuala Lumpur-Karak Highway and the
Guthrie Corridor Expressway.
For whom the tolls toll?
There's a lot more story behind it... such as the formula the Government
uses to compensate the concessionaires should the toll rates become lower
than those stipulated in the agreement.
And you have to ask the question: For whom and on whom the tolls toll?
The concessionaires? The BN Government and its elite politicians? The
Rakyat?
Meanwhile, the Anti-Toll Coalition will hold a gathering at 4.00pm,
January 7 (Sunday) in front of the Sunway Pyramid shopping complex, where
Litrak office is located nearby, to launch a rakyat's protest against the
toll increase.
Ina separate statement, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang
also called on the public dissatisfied with the toll hikes to participate
in the Sunday protest.
MORE!
January 05, 2007
For whom the tolls toll?... ( 2 )
There's seems to be more to the story when KeAdilan information chief
Tian Chua revealed yesterday that Works Minister S. Samy Vellu has been
lying through his teeth about the government's effort in negotiating, and
compensating, the concessionaire in order to help lessen road users'
burden. Recap:
"There's no such thing as the government having negotiations with the
concessionaires (to reduce the toll charges for road users) because the
government was already agreeable to the stipulated toll rate, and
subsequent increases -- based on a formula stated clearly in the
contract."
"The truth is all this is just wayang as the government has already
agreed to the toll rates when it signed the concession agreement that is
lop-sided and against the interest of the rakyat," Chua said.
Here's the evidence that Chua and KeAdilan Treasurer Khalid Ibrahim
showed the Press yesterday.
SOURCE: Parti KeAdilan Rakyat
In the section titled: Reduction in Toll by Government of the concession
aggreement signed between the Government and Litrak on April 23, 1996,
Page 47, Clause 16.2.1 stipulates that:
In the event that the Government imposes Toll for any class of vehicle
for or during any Concession Year which is lower than the Agreed Toll for
that class of vehicle for that Concession Year then the Government shall
compensate the Concession Company, in respect of the relevant Concession
Year when such action was taken ("the relevant Concession Year"), and for
each Concession Year thereafter during which the decision of the
Government continues to apply by paying to the Concession Company an
amount certified by the Operation Auditors to be calculated in the
following manner:
CA = ‡” [AT x (2 x TV)] - TA
(View picture above for the definitions of the respective acronyms)
The amount of compensation shall be certified by the Operation Auditors
and shall be payable within ninety (90) days from the date of the joint
certificate certifying such amount from the Operation Auditors of the end
of the Concession Year.
As such, the schedular increase in toll rates throughout the 33-year
concession period has been stipulated in the concession agreement as is
summarised as follows:
December 14, Samy was quoted by Bernama as saying that "despite the
Government agreeing to increase toll charges at five highways from
January 1, it still has to fork out a hefty RM2.58 billion in
compensation".
On this, Chua added: "Look again, the agreement also states that Litrak
is allowed to increase the toll charge to RM2.10 from 2007 through 2015,
and then increase to RM3.10 from 2016 to the end of the concession
period, provided there's no extension."
"But the real issue is this: The toll charges, and the compensation, do
not reflect the actual cost of building the highway, and the amount of
cash that Litrak keeps collecting from road users after it has recouped
the construction cost," Chua cautioned.
Samy 'dreaming or suffering from amnesia'?
Meanwhile, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang has refuted Samy
Vellu's claims that the former was once allowed to pour through highway
concession agreements for nine hours without finding any flaws.
He said Samy gmust be dreaming or suffering from amnesiah when he made
the allegations.
Kit said, after having raised strong objections in Parliament during July
1987 on the Letter of Intent offered to then United Engineers Malaysia
Bhd (UEM) to construct the North-South Expressway, Samy offered DAP MPs a
glance at the tender documents.
Kit claimed that the concession agreement was eventually awarded to UEM
in March 18, 1988 and he never got to see it - because he was
incarcerated under the Internal Security Act at that time.
At the press conference yesterday, members of the Anti-Toll Coalition
from PAS and DAP also questioned whether the terms of the concession
agreement that the Government signed with Litrak, which was obtained by
KeAdilan, apply across-the-board to all existing toll concessions
throughout the country in a cookie-cutter methodology.
MORE...
CREDIT: Taken from Autoworld.com.my posted by tWofish.
For your reading consumption.
