KUALA LUMPUR: There is no need to waste people’s money by building the Penang Undersea Tunnel when the island already has two bridges connecting it to the mainland, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said.
He said this while registering his criticism on the RM6.3 billion proposed traffic dispersal project which the DAP-led Penang government has embarked on.
“We already have two Penang bridges, so why is there a need to waste people's money by building the undersea tunnel?”
“As if the bungalow scandal was not enough lately a new monster of a scandal has emerged in the form of the undersea tunnel,” Najib said in a blogpost yesterday.
He was alluding to the the court case and allegations against Chief Minister Lim Guang Eng for buying a bungalow below market price from a developer with vested interests.
In 2016, Lim had pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption in relation to the conversion of land from agricultural to residential and the purchase of a plot of land and bungalow at below-market value.
The case against Lim and businesswoman Phang Li Koon would be heard at the Penang High Court between March 26 and May 25.
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission is also investigating the Penang undersea tunnel project and its three paired road projects are now under.
Meanwhile Barisan Nasional strategic communications deputy director Datuk Eric See-To also took DAP to task on its accusations that BN was sabotaging and causing delays to the mega project of three paired roads and the undersea tunnel – and hence, depriving the Penang folk of a solution to their traffic congestion.
“Actually, the major NGOs, residents’ groups and activists are all against this project. Groups such as Consumer Association of Penang, Penang Forum; Sahabat Alam Malaysia and Aliran have always said that this project is overpriced, forced through by the Penang government without proper public consultation. They have also said that it will not solve traffic congestion,” said See-To in a recent Facebook entry.
He also included links to statements made by three different groups that raised concerns and objection to the mega project.
“In fact, the supposed main beneficiaries of the first road – the 10.5km Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang road – which are the Tanjung Bungah residents, do not even want that road,” added See-To.
He said the Tanjung Bungah residents’ associations had collected 400 signatures to oppose the road, stressing that it would be an environmental disaster, and there had been no proper public consultation exercise.
A third reason was that the road would be dangerous as it would be built on steep hillsides, said See-To.
“The residents’ association also said the road that now cost more than RM1.1bil in order to save 11 to 14 minutes out of the 20 minutes travelling time now is not justified but will in fact make traffic worse due to new bottlenecks.”
“Despite so many strong objections to the three roads and tunnel project over so many years, the NGOs and the people of Penang are puzzled as to why the state government insists on arrogantly pushing through this RM6.34bil mega project and vigorously defends it whenever it is being questioned,” he added.
See-To said that for last year, the utilisation for the first Penang Bridge was 87 per cent of its capacity while the second Penang Bridge was only about 50 per cent.
“Therefore, there is still ample existing capacity to cater for traffic between the island and the mainland,” he said.