PETALING JAYA: Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has criticised government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil for his announcement of the Petaling Jaya Dispersal Link (PJD Link) highway project cancellation.
In his latest “Keluar Sekejap” podcast, Khairy said the cancellation lacked detail about compensation to the developer and alternative projects to solve traffic problems in the city.
“When you are announcing something big like this, you need to have the details. You must first clarify the compensation.
“Second, the PJD Link project was said to be a solution to the traffic congestion (so) the government must now explain what the next steps are to address the traffic problem amid the cancellation.
“If you make such a big decision, you can’t announce it just like that. Even a schoolboy can do that. It’s not even his brief, and he doesn’t have the expertise to answer questions,” he said, implying that the announcement should have come from the minister responsible for the project.
On April 17, Fahmi announced that the government would not proceed with the project after the concessionaire failed to meet six out of 11 conditions set by Putrajaya.
A day later, works minister Alexander Nanta Linggi said it was uncertain whether the government needed to compensate the developer for the cancellation.
Today, a Petaling Jaya residents’ group called on the government to reconsider the decision to cancel the project as it was crucial for alleviating congestion caused by an increase in population in the area.
On a separate matter, Khairy took housing and local government minister Nga Kor Ming to task for his announcement of RM5.21 million in development funding for Hulu Selangor and Kuala Kubu Bharu ahead of the by-election on May 11.
“Nga truly believes Malaysians are foolish,” the former health minister said.
Co-host Shahril Hamdan described the funding as electioneering, adding that he expected the voters to see through it. However, he also pointed out that such moves are expected during elections.
Khairy and Shahril also noted the divisions in the unity government ahead of the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election, with MCA and MIC announcing their boycott of the polls unless the unity government fields a Barisan Nasional candidate.
“We see MCA and MIC sidelined, and yet they also don’t seem eager to be accepted by their colleagues in the government.
“This is an ongoing trend where MCA and MIC need to make a decision one day about what they really want to do, whether to stay in BN even though they are treated like this, or something more radical,” Shahril said. - FMT
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