Kuching Airport Yet to Award but Work Started

COVER-UP CASE OF KUCHING AIRPORT PROJECT

UPGRADE FOR KUCHING AIRPORT

In the Star news (Friday 23 April 2004) page 21 (Nation), Datuk Chan Kong Choy, the Transport Minister said that Kuching International Airport will be upgraded once the Federal Govt decides to implement the project. He further add (quote), "The Federal Govt is in the final stage of making a decision & the project is definitely on... We have not awarded the contract yet but will be making the final decision soon." (unquote).

Interestingly, when I was in Kuching last year, I saw many earthmoving machines carrying out earthworks at the Airport, and so, I asked a client of mine from Kuching, "what are those activities?" I was informed that it was a contract awarded to a contractor (purportedly related to Tan Sri Ting Pek King) for the extension of the current airport. My curiousity arose as I felt that the work carried out was slow-moving and looks like the contractor is having problem.

Now, with this piece of news, I can understand what is happening. As I wonder and ponder, how is it that the contractor, if he hasn't yet being awarded a contract, how could he start work and how come he is given possession of site by the Govt????? Or, is Chan Kong Choy putting up a LIE story??? I just wonder if our Ministers are transparent and honest as expounded by PM Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi? Is it a new way of business game in Malaysia that if anybody is keen on a Govt. project, he should show initiative by mobilizing his plants and machineries & get the works commenced such that the Govt would have no alternative but to award that project to him?

In a similar scenario, the construction work for the Stormwater project in KL was well in progress when Mahathir made the announcement of the immediate need to have a Stormwater drainage system immediately after Dataran Merdeka sufferred a bad flood many months ago. The project was awarded to MMC-Gamuda on a Turnkey-Design & Build & Operate Basis (privatization concept). Since then, the new PM has made some change to the contract. The question again arose is - "Was the contract work in progress well before an award letter being issued & how did they get possession of site without an award letter???"

I continue to wonder if our new PM understand the relative meaning when he says - "Cakap Tak Serupa Bikin" & "that he pledge that he will choose ministers with integrity, honest and untainted reputation." Could Pak-Lah shed some light on the Kuching Airport Extension Project and why was work being carried out if the project has yet to be awarded????

I can only add an advice to Pak-Lah, "Do you know your Ministers well and do you really want a clean Govt???? GOD Bless you and GOD help the Malaysians who are not cronies...........

Bakun Project Damned Again

BAKUN DAMNED ONCE AGAIN - HISTORY REPEAT ITSELF

Bakun Dam project delay

The question of insufficient equipments as related by the consortium companies was puzzling as it was managed by a supposely dynamic and strong organizational team for that's why the project was awarded to them by the government of Malaysia. Many project management professionals & fello industry players had attributed the delay to reasons such as the lack of planning, lack of information, & possibly unforeseen circumstances was the main reason.

I'm am certainly sure that lack of planning by the project team members (excluding the top management) isn't the main cause of those failures as this would be a marked disrespect to those engineers and managers currently working on the project as the team currently handling the project are well experience and qualified people - people who had been with this project since the days of Ting Pek King & those who had been associated with Bakun project since the inception, and those who had been building dams over the last 20 years and the presence of experience sub-contractors.

What could have been unspoken and shielded may be the complex & disturbing relationship of the consortium members, their defined roles & responsibilities and the conflict among themselves as to the sharing of the cake & appointment of sub-contractors. Unless each consortium member are agreeable with their scope of work & role-play, the delay to the project is the natural outcome of poor (money)management.

Project cannot be run without proper and adequate fundings and at this very stage, the funding issue seem yet to be resolved. Santa Claus in the form of EPF (the rich Daddy) will be there soon as the call had come from non other than Syed Mokhtar, the main schemer. The irony is that the project was awarded to a consortium led by Syed Mokhtar who had convince the government that they had readily resources and the financial muscles (plus GIIG support) that is capable of undertaking & funding this size of project on a turnkey basis (BOT). If not I can't find an appropriate reason why the project was awarded to them.

If EPF is going to use the millions of contributors money to back the consortium, then the return on investment must be justified. I just wonder whether this is going to be another bailout like STAR LRT, PUTRA LRT & MAS, etc..... & EPF continues to pay dismal returns to the shareholders.