KUALA LUMPUR -- Political Secretary to the Minister of Finance Tony Pua has asserted that the government is not terminating the Mass Rapid Transit Line 2 (MRT2) underground work project, instead opportunities will avail if the new project is awarded at a lower cost.
In an open letter to MMC Gamuda KVMRT Sdn Bhd (MMC Gamuda) today, Pua, who is also Member of Parliament for Damansara, rapped the directors of MMC-Gamuda for “putting up a great show” since the decision to terminate the project was announced.
Among the claims made by MMC Gamuda were the decision to terminate the contract was hasty and ill-conceived and would result in 20,000 workers losing their jobs, prompting a campaign asking Malaysians to sign a petition to “Save 20,000” jobs.
“The performance and mobilisation of the above campaign are nothing short of impressive. The question of cost of the project to the government was conveniently ignored,” Pua said.
He said the government did not intend to engage in a public war of words but wanted to continue the good working relationship to complete the works.
Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng recently announced the Cabinet decision to terminate the underground work contract of the MRT2 with MMC-Gamuda and decided to re-tender all the unfinished underground work of the project.
Hence, the claim that the re-tendering exercise will cause 20,000 job losses, does not arise.
“To the purported 20,000 workers, who, according to MMC Gamuda, would lose their jobs as a result of the underground contract termination, let me emphasise that the Malaysian government is not terminating the project.
“You will find plenty of opportunities when the new project is awarded at a lower cost, while the savings generated would mean even more projects for the future,” Pua said, Bernama report.
He said perhaps, instead of starting a petition on Change.org to seek the government to reverse its decision on the termination, it might be more productive to start a petition asking the bosses at MMC Gamuda to make the government an offer it could not refuse.
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