GEORGE TOWN: Penang Gerakan has revealed more possible deals involving the controversial RM6.3 billion undersea tunnel and three paired roads project.
This time around, its acting state youth chief Jason Loo revealed that the luxury condominium units, dubbed the City of Dreams, being built at the Lot 702 of Bandar Tanjung Pinang, was promoted to be sold even before the special purpose vehicle (SPV) company had handed over the land as payment for the three paired roads project.
He cited an article in December 2013 where the sale of the luxury condominium, which was being developed by Ewein Zenith Sdn Bhd, was promoted for the price of RM1.5 million onwards.
He then referred to the answer given by state Public Works Committee chairman Lim Hock Seng, in which Lim said that the piece of land was only alienated by the state government as payment for the SPV company in February 2015.
“It is rather amusing that Ewein Zenith, a third party, could promote the sale of the luxury condominium units almost two years before the land was handed over as payment by the state government.
“It was as if they had already anticipated the land deal two years ahead,” he said in a press conference today.
The controversial tunnel project is now a subject of investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
The project had raised numerous controversies in recent months, especially on the high cost of the RM305 million feasibility studies as well as the 22-month delay in completing it.
Several parties had also highlighted numerous discrepancies involving the project.
However, the DAP-led state government had denied any wrongdoing.
Speaking further, Loo also revealed that the state handed over the 1.49 hectare land to a different company from its original developer, who promoted the luxury condominium sales back in 2013.
He said that the agreement made for the land was made with Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd, not Ewein Zenith Sdn Bhd, which is developing the City of Dreams project.
“This is a ridiculous and the state government has to come clean on this,” he added.