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Solid Waste Services: Uncertainty over privatisation to end soon |
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Tuesday, 21 February 2006 |
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KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 21 (Bernama) -- The uncertainty over the privatisation of solid waste management services in the country is expected to end as the cabinet is going to make the final decision on the policy soon.
Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting said Tuesday the dilemma faced by the two interim concessionaires -- Alam Flora Sdn Bhd and Southern Waste Sdn Bhd -- which took over the domestic waste disposal services eight years ago would likely end soon.
Alam Flora was given the concession for waste disposal services in the central and eastern regions of peninsular Malaysia and Southern Waste, in the southern states such as Melaka, Negeri Sembilan and Johor.
"The existing concessionaires are still in the interim stage of taking over. The (full) privatisation (agreement) has not being signed yet.
"The government will make a decision on full privatisation soon," he told reporters after witnessing the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Asian Center for Media Studies Sdn Bhd and the MCA ICT Resource Centre at Wisma MCA here.
He said the concessionaires were given the interim agreement to familiarise themselves with the disposal waste services before signing a full privatisation agreement.
This was to enable the government to know the actual problems and other technical aspects of the waste disposal services on the ground before agreeing on any full privatisation agreement, he said.
Ong said the interim period was important for the government to evaluate the concessionaires on whether they had carried out the services as stipulated under the agreement and determine whether they could be considered for full privatisation.
The cabinet would make the final decision after consultation with several parties including the Economic Planning Unit, Housing and Local Government Ministry, state governments and the Finance Ministry.
Ong also explained the rationale behind the deferment of the ministry's plan to table the Solid Waste Management Bill, saying that it could not be done yet because it had to wait for the government's policy decision on the privatisation of solid waste services.
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