You would have by now heard about the government’s proposal to acquire highway concessions and abolish toll collection in stages, starting with highways which Gamuda Berhad has a stake in such as the Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong (LDP), Sistem Penyuraian Trafik KL Barat (SPRINT), Lebuhraya Shah Alam (KESAS) and the SMART Tunnel.
There’s also the proposal to introduce a congestion charge to highways, where off-peak users will get to use the roads for free, and normal hour motorists will get a 30% discount. In the suggestion, peak period users will continue to pay today’s rates. Besides getting some vital revenue, this move is also aimed at spreading out traffic and easing jams. Recap here.
Unsurprisingly, the announcement has captured plenty of attention and received no shortage of feedback, from the public and commentators alike. The timing of the announcement just before a crucial by-election also got tongues wagging, although ministers such as Anthony Loke has come out to deny the connection.
Subsequently, prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and economic affairs minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali have come out to “urge calm”, temper expectations and deflect criticism of the congestion charge proposal.
“We are offering cheaper rate (during normal hours) as not many people are using, that would mean people will choose that time to travel to the benefit from the reduction of the rates,” Tun M said, reported by The Edge.
“To cancel all the rates becomes too expensive. We need to buy the tolled road. When you buy, you need to raise money and service the loans that we raise. So we try to reduce the money (costs) we have to pay for acquiring highways, that will go stage by stage and step by step, (we decided) on not a fully toll-free road but partially all free at certain time.” he added.
Azmin responded to the statement of Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, who had questioned why was the government not taking over PLUS. “One by one (toll takeover), just now you (reporters) said the huge financial burden when implementing the takeover.
“When the government takes over four toll concessions, there was mention of the inabiity to pay and now there is call to acquire one more,” he retorted, reported by Malay Mail. Azmin added that the highway takeover process needed comprehensive discussions such as reviewing the agreements as well as the financial implications.
The minister also assured that this move, which is to fulfil the Pakatan Harapan general elections manifesto, will not affect other development plans.
“This is our commitment in the past general election, but negotiations and discussions are being carried out so that it can be made in stages because the impact on the national’s finance is large. We have to ensure it will not affect other economic developments, as while we want to implement the manifesto, we also want economic development to continue to expand,” he told reporters.
On its part, Gamuda is seeking for a deal that follows “market valuation norms and practices,” according to the listed company’s announcement to Bursa Malaysia yesterday. “As the board of directors of Gamuda has a fiduciary duty to deliver fair and reasonable value to its shareholders, the company has to ensure that the proposed transaction will be based on market valuation norms and practices,” it said.
The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is the largest shareholder in Gamuda with an 11.88% stake, followed by Amanah Saham Bumiputra (4.99%), Perak Royalty (4.79%) and Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (4.14%). Gamuda’s MD Datuk Lin Yun Ling has a personal 3.04% stake in the company he helms.
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Bashings start in… 3, 2…1!!
It’s ok Tun M and Azmin. Slowly abolish the tolls. We rakyat are not BN cybertroopers who don’t know how to be pragmatic one
I am satisfied with the new government!
Dedak2.0 can make anyone satisfied as long they are kept fed.
You do realise that it was these people who promised to abolish the tolls within 100 days…?! No one forced them to set a deadline. They’re the ones who declared the deadline themselves.
They promised it to win votes. Now when in power they want to renege on their own promises. If they made the promises on a whim… coz its popular… without due diligence and research… then it is their own fault. Such a foolish and moronic thing to do.
You cannot fault the people who demand they honor their promises. Thus… do not put the blame on BN or cybertroopers… it is shameful.
Toll abolished within 100 days? Please show me the source of your assertion.
There are two sides to every story.
I am not happy with the current gov.
I was a trooper for the current govt before ge14. Now that they won they are being all sombong with us. So some (incl myself) left and got a real job.
In the real world, i realize what we were doing made it hard for the economy to grow because it was destabilising the country. It’s difficult to earn and grow when the businesses are impacted by social confusion. When u are one of them, u dont care coz it is easy money (at that time).
Well, i was 19 lol.
Lol me too bro. I remember being told to get all my friends to go to b_rsih, being promised this and that… in the end i just realize they are taking advantage of me coz i wuz young and not mature yet…
You promised to marry the girl, so after playing with her you r satisfied to capati the janji? Well come meet the angry father (voters).
Betui bruh. Since 2013 Pipu still very hangry and cheated by janji car price 30% reduction. Today 2019, pipu still waiting… malubetuiBosskuu
There is still Harapan for Malaysia with people like you.
There’s no Harapan when they only have dupes like you to defend them.
Irrespective of who is the Government the people will have to pay either directly or indirectly, toll or no toll. There is no free lunch and the only guarantees in life are death and taxes. Get use to it.
The difference is u pass toll, u must pay.
Taxes, whole different story. Many Malaysians are super ‘creative’.
Yes, when there is toll highway users pay. When toll is abolished everyone pay, unless you are a freeloader and don’t pay tax. The highways are already there and need to be maintained.
still waiting for Sg Nyior toll house to be demolished since 2008…. i got white hair now, been that long…
Inb4 janji will be diuturn.
Did anyone realised majority trolls that start bashing are those who has chauffeur transport and also those riding two wheeler…
Why no. Never realised that. I ride 4 wheels and I would still castigate that old dude for creating this problem in the first place. Well, expecting him to solve it meant he has to admit responsibility and admit his errors. Will he do it? Yeah right! He would rather keel over with his middlefinger to the rakyat.
True that…these toll roads made less money then 1MDB.
“To cancel all the rates becomes too expensive. We need to buy the tolled road. When you buy, you need to raise money and service the loans that we raise.”
Wait a minute. Wasn’t this reasoning Najib had given when he proposed on reducing the toll and which got brickbats by the Netizens? So what now? Tun is just recycling the same methods of the previous government? Be a bit more original lah! Why not see your colleague Rafizi’s study on taking over the tolls and abolishing them without paying a single cent of compensation?
LP=PL
For 30 years I had not left the country because i didn’t give up on this country. We had a major achievement in overthrowing an evil regime in 2018. All those who left taking the easy way out were proven wrong. Malaysians can change.
Today, I stand corrected. There is no hope left when an evil regime is allowed to return.
To the intellectually-challenged, do you know that the concessionaires can be bought over anytime? The govt just needs to pay RM 400 billion (check Works and Finance Ministry statement).
So you want the country to spend RM400 billion so that you don’t need to pay RM30 toll when you head back on holidays? So folks in PJ don’t need to pay the LDP?
What’s in it for Sabah and Sarawakians, who aren’t affected by toll, but would have 400 bil paid for with their tax money.
Do you know what the impact to the country will be to abolish your RM2.10 LDP toll? Do you know how many generations will be indebted to ensure you don’t need to pay RM 2.10? Do you know how much the national debt will increase to fund this and which countries we will be indebted to, just to end your RM2.10 nightmare? On top of that, additional billions to maintain all the highways.
So why is it RM400 bil? Ask BOSSKU Najis. The evil regime set the contracts, gave the crony concessions, Naji, Samy, Ling, Old Madey. But no you won’t, because this is a complex issue beyond the comprehension of the Malaysian voter.
Most Malaysian voters at least knew that all these contracts were set by Tun during his 1st regime. Now expecting his 2nd regime to clean the mess from his 1st regime is like hoping money to drop from sky.
Ni bkn bodo, ni otak penipu putar belit!
later will u-turn…..Just wait
Previous govt, putar belit
New govt, u-turn…
Suggest to look into other existing concession agreements too to reduce govt expenditure such as the hospital/clinics maintenance concession….make it an annual open tender, instead of current multi years concession….then govt can reduce its high costs….
“We are offering cheaper rate (during normal hours) as not many people are using, that would mean people will choose that time to travel to the benefit from the reduction of the rates”
Dear Tun & ministers, please come down to earth and think. We don’t choose to travel on peak hours, no sane mind will like to get stuck on the road every single morning for hours. The peak hours are “Peak” because they are huge bunch of us that have no choice because of work, sending kids to school, lorries sending goods to shops and other life commitment that have fixed timing.
Your logic of congested charges will promote reducing peak traffic is a Fairy Tale.
Always support Tun M. He is the superhero can do everything!
An unkempt promise is a bad thing, just because PH is the underdog, it doesn´t mean that anything they do wrong or less well, is excusable.