In another case of high-cost deals that benefit corporate bigwigs at the expense of taxpayers, Transport Minister Ong Tee Keat admitted today that the Finance Ministry has been indirectly subsidising Express Rail Link, operator of the high-speed rail service from the KL International Airport.
Grilled by KeADILan vice president Azmin Ali, Tee Keat told Parliament that ERL - a unit of tycoon Francis Yeoh’s YTL Corp Bhd - has been reimbursed since April 2008 because it was unable to cover costs due to poor sales
“For example, if RM51 is collected from an international flight, RM5 is allocated to ERL,” Tee Keat said.
The ERL is the latest in a long running series of deals that have turned out to be disadvantageous to taxpayers. Most of these mega-deals - so called because they involved billions of ringgit - were crafted and approved during ex- premier Mahathir Mohamad’s time in power.
There is growing fear that his protege Najib Abdul Razak, the finance minister and incoming prime minister, will perpetuate this legacy of dubious wheeling-and dealing.
Adverse to taxpayers
In fact, just days ago, Najib had axed a low-cost-carrier-terminal project proposed by Air Asia boss Tony Fernandez, that aimed to reduce the rich margins charged by Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd and passed onto consumers across the board.
Said Azmin: “I ask the Finance Minister to come into Parliament and give a response towards this issue so that the people can get a proper explanation. For us it is clear, the government already has a master plan for KLIA which includes a designated area for the building of LCCT.
“Why was it not built in the early stages when the government has already spent 268 million ringgit for building the temporary LCCT in KLIA?,” Azmin asked, referring to the policy flip-flops that has resulted in unnecessary and additional costs to taxpayers.
Under the existing concession agreement, MAHB, the operator of the airport, has to pay ERL a portion of service charges it levies on all passengers.
But under a restructuring exercise in MAHB itself, the Finance Ministry has to reimburse MAHB for the sum it pays to ERL.
Tee Keat defended the payout, saying ERL invested huge amounts of capital to operate the rail line but ticket sales could “cover the cost of the outlay and maintenance”. The allocation was also based on projected traffic before ERL began operations.
“With the inception of the low-cost carrier terminal two years ago, takings have further deteriorated,” Tee Keat said.
The BN federal government has collected RM1.86 billion in airport taxes since 2004. Last year, RM446.4 million was collected, with RM292 million from KLIA itself.
Keadilan
Grilled by KeADILan vice president Azmin Ali, Tee Keat told Parliament that ERL - a unit of tycoon Francis Yeoh’s YTL Corp Bhd - has been reimbursed since April 2008 because it was unable to cover costs due to poor sales
“For example, if RM51 is collected from an international flight, RM5 is allocated to ERL,” Tee Keat said.
The ERL is the latest in a long running series of deals that have turned out to be disadvantageous to taxpayers. Most of these mega-deals - so called because they involved billions of ringgit - were crafted and approved during ex- premier Mahathir Mohamad’s time in power.
There is growing fear that his protege Najib Abdul Razak, the finance minister and incoming prime minister, will perpetuate this legacy of dubious wheeling-and dealing.
Adverse to taxpayers
In fact, just days ago, Najib had axed a low-cost-carrier-terminal project proposed by Air Asia boss Tony Fernandez, that aimed to reduce the rich margins charged by Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd and passed onto consumers across the board.
Said Azmin: “I ask the Finance Minister to come into Parliament and give a response towards this issue so that the people can get a proper explanation. For us it is clear, the government already has a master plan for KLIA which includes a designated area for the building of LCCT.
“Why was it not built in the early stages when the government has already spent 268 million ringgit for building the temporary LCCT in KLIA?,” Azmin asked, referring to the policy flip-flops that has resulted in unnecessary and additional costs to taxpayers.
Under the existing concession agreement, MAHB, the operator of the airport, has to pay ERL a portion of service charges it levies on all passengers.
But under a restructuring exercise in MAHB itself, the Finance Ministry has to reimburse MAHB for the sum it pays to ERL.
Tee Keat defended the payout, saying ERL invested huge amounts of capital to operate the rail line but ticket sales could “cover the cost of the outlay and maintenance”. The allocation was also based on projected traffic before ERL began operations.
“With the inception of the low-cost carrier terminal two years ago, takings have further deteriorated,” Tee Keat said.
The BN federal government has collected RM1.86 billion in airport taxes since 2004. Last year, RM446.4 million was collected, with RM292 million from KLIA itself.
Keadilan
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