|
The Sun
by Llew-Ann Phang
KUALA LUMPUR (July 11, 2007): Deputy Prime Minister
Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak today dismissed talk that the compensation for the
scrapped Broga incinerator project would be more than RM500 million, saying the
amount is still being negotiated.
Najib, who chairs the Cabinet Committee On Solid Waste Management, was asked by
reporters to comment on speculation that the compensation could be between RM500
million and RM700 million.
"No, that's off the mark," he said. "I cannot give the exact figure because we
are still in negotiation," he said.
Najib, who is also Defence Minister, was speaking to reporters after witnessing
the presentation of RM170,000 worth of pharmaceutical products by Chemical
Company of Malaysia Bhd to the Malaysian contingent in the United Nations
Interim Force in Lebanon in the ministry here.
Although there had been talk since the end of last year that the RM1.5 billion
project in Broga, Semenyih, was scrapped, there was no official confirmation
until last Friday (July 6), through a letter from the Attorney-General's
Chambers in a court case on the project.
A group of residents in Semenyih, concerned about the incinerator's impact on
public health and the environment, had filed a suit opposing the project in
November 2003.
Before the suit was heard in the Federal Court on Friday, the residents' lawyer
Uma Parvathy Thothathri announced she had received the letter on Thursday (July
5, which said the chambers was informed by the government that the project has
been cancelled.
On Saturday (July 7), Najib said the government decided to scrap the project
because it was very costly to build and maintain.
He said the decision was made at the Cabinet Committee Meeting last year.
He said there were other alternatives to address the waste disposal problem,
such as the sanitary landfill system in Bukit Tagar.
A news report said the government was in the midst of compensation negotiations
with Japanese firm Ebara Corp, the contractor for the incinerator project, and
its local partner Hartasuma Sdn Bhd.
It said although construction of the incinerator had not yet begun at the site,
there was work done on technical drawings, surveys and procurement arrangements.
It said the compensation sought was believed to be between RM500 million and
RM700 million.
Asked today to elaborate on how the government arrived at the decision that the
cost was too high, Najib said: "The cost is high, but not only the capital cost,
the operational cost is high as well."
He said these translated into very exorbitant fees for local councils.
"This would be untenable because we have to pass it to the consumers. So at that
point of time, the government decided that it should not continue with the
project," said Najib, who later flagged off the Malaysia 50th Independence
Expedition Tour: Cape Town - Kuala Lumpur 2007 at the ministry.
|
Waste & Climate Conference, Copenhagen (7-18 December 2009)
The Dangers of Plastic Bags
