PETALING JAYA: Economist Ramon Navaratnam has welcomed a proposal to group all toll highways under a trust body, saying it would ensure transparency in the government’s dealings with operators.
Navaratnam said it would enable better scrutiny of the highways and clear up what he called the “perennial problems” related to negotiated contracts and pave the way to the lowering of operational costs.
An obvious benefit of adopting the proposal, he said, would be that the “often lopsided” agreements could be tweaked.
“Naturally, the operators or concession holders would oppose it as they would come under the public eye. They would now be required to send in reports related to spending.
“Ultimately, those who are making excessive profits at the expense of the public can have these excesses be returned to the public. That is only fair to the rakyat,” he told FMT.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mustapa Mohamed said last week the government would take six months to study the proposal. He said adopting it would probably lead to reductions in toll rates.
Navaratnam called for public discourse on the matter.
He said Mustapa could give details of the plan at public forums so the matter could be debated and weaknesses ironed out.
Pankaj C Kumar, formerly the investment chief of KSK Group Bhd, said the buyout structure, concession periods, current toll rates and the new umbrella trust’s shareholding would be among the factors the government would have to consider in studying the proposal.
“Who will own the trust? This is a pertinent question,” he said.
“If you want to make people happy, tolls must be lower. But while doing that, concessions must be shorter, so that people don’t pay tolls forever.
“It has to be a holistic proposal.” - FMT
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