TTF: If there is no lie that spews from Guan Eng’s mouth on any given day, it’s not a regular day in Penang.
Yesterday, the Chief Minister pointed out that the fact Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd was not bankrupt five years after the award of the RM6.34 billion Penang Undersea Tunnel Project proves that his administration was right in awarding the project to the SPV (see news item below).
What???
That’s just like saying, “it’s ok to award the project even to a roti canai seller who owns a RM2 company as long as the RM2 company does not go bankrupt.”
And we have this fellow for a Chief Minister.
In the first place, it’s been over four years since the project was awarded. Despite the state government having paid RMRM219.99 million to Consortium Zenith and an independent consultant (see breakdown below), the project has yet to see the light of day.
So tell me, how could anyone expect the roti canai seller to go bankrupt if he’s being pumped with money for mere pieces of paper without even making the roti canai??
On the 22nd of May 2017, Public Works Committee Chairman Lim Hock Seng told a state legislative meeting that a total of RM219.99 million had been paid, the breakdown of which is as follows:
Payments made
Payment to Consortium Zenith: RM208.75 million
Payment to independent consultant: RM11.23 million
Overall: RM219.99 million
Then, on the 2nd of November 2017, a state assembly sitting was told that RM11.23 million was paid in cash to HSS Integrated Sdn Bhd, an independent consultant hired by the state government to evaluate the tunnel project.
But on the 11th of January 2018, the Chief Minister told newsmen that the state had “not paid a single sen” for feasibility studies related to the tunnel.
“We only swapped two pieces of land with the development value of RM1,300 psf for 3.7 acres of land which comes up to RM208 million,” he told a press conference at his office that day.
If that’s the case, what was the payment to HSS for? Murtabak? See the cost breakdown below and tell me the RM11.23 million was not for tunnel feasibility studies:
Three main roads:
Feasibility study: RM31.2 million
Detailed design: RM177.4 million
Overall: RM208.7 million
Undersea tunnel:
Feasibility study: RM20 million
Detailed design: RM76.2 million
Overall: RM96.2million
See how Guan Eng confuses himself? He pays so much to these companies for murtabak, and yet, has the cheek to tell us they’re not bankrupt.
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PETALING JAYA: Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng continued his war of words over the controversial Penang Tunnel project with MCA deputy president Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong.
Guan Eng said that the fact that the Penang Tunnel Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) company has still not gone bankrupt five years later after the award of the RM6.34 billion mega-project proves that the Penang Government had made the right decision to award the project to the SPV.
“Wee also said that the Zenith Consortium was in financial distress when it was awarded the tender contract in 2013. Whilst we cannot answer on behalf of the company, the Penang Tender Committee headed by the Penang State Secretary made the right decision then, because until today five years later, this so-called “financially-distressed company” is still progressing and has not gone bankrupt.” said Guan Eng in a press statement on Sunday (Feb 4).
Wee had previously issued a statement that claimed that the Penang government had effectively awarded the RM6.34 billion tunnel project to a 82 days old company with negative asset value with only a paid up capital of RM300,000.
Wee made this claim after the Penang Government had confirmed that China Railway Construction Corporation Ltd (CRCC) was not a shareholder of the Tunnel SPV.
He also claimed that without CRCC and Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG) as shareholders, the Penang Govt had misrepresented to the public that the Tunnel SPV had RM4.5 billion in paid-up capital backing.
On his Facebook page, Wee had also uploaded various financial statements of the Tunnel SPV and its holding company that showed both companies has auditors’ “emphasis of matter” that expressed significant doubt that both companies can continue to operate as a going concern.
He asked if the weak financial strength of the awarded company had contributed to delays in the Tunnel SPV completing the full RM305mil worth of reports or to the delay in starting construction of and the roads or tunnel even after almost five years since the project award.
Source: The Star Online
