Kidex headache can hurt Azmin and Pakatan

Cecilia Jeyanthi Victor, The Ant Daily

Petaling Jaya residents opposing the RM2.42 billion Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) project have good reasons to be bitter with Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali.

The latest saga on the highway project is the state government’s inclusion of the controversial project in its Selangor 2035 state structure plan (Laporan Tinjauan Kajian Struktur Negeri Selangor 2035).

The state government has published advertisements in local dailies to inform that the survey report for the state structure plan was available for public viewing.

When Say No to Kidex (SNTK) committee members checked on the structure plan, they were in for a shock to see Kidex as one of the highways included in the state’s development plan.

So what does this mean, especially when Azmn had laid down three new conditions for Kidex Sdn Bhd and the Malaysian Highway Authority to follow?  He had said that the new conditions must be met before the extended concession agreement expires on February 15 next year.

The three conditions are a full public disclosure of Kidex Sdn Bhd’s concession agreement; the proposed toll rates and returns of the highway; and a thorough traffic impact assessment to show that it would be beneficial to users and residents in Petaling Jaya.

These conditions are yet to be fulfilled, according to SNTK committee member Mak Khuin Weng, who told Theantdaily that Azmin was acting in an irresponsible manner by including Kidex in the structure plan and at the same time imposing conditions as though the project would be called off if these conditions were not met.

What is more baffling is that the structure plan on display was approved in October 2014, about a month before Azmin announced his three conditions.

Does the inclusion of the Kidex project in the state structure plan indicate that the state government has agreed to it even before the three conditions had been met?

Or was the imposition of the three conditions merely an eyewash?

Whatever it is, Azmin’s stand on Kidex does not look any different from his predecessor’s.  In May, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim had announced that Kidex was an integral part of Selangor’s new structural plan for 2035. He was soon removed from his post, with his adamant stand in support of Kidex being cited as a reason.

Selangor residents had hoped that Azmin would take their side, as proclaimed by his party PKR. Even Pakatan Rakyat’s election manifesto had stated the coalition’s opposition against highway projects in Selangor.

Azmin did say the right things when he first assumed power, but his actions are now proving otherwise.

Selangor residents, especially those affected by the Kidex project are very angry, and are threatening to hold protests.

If their concerns are not taken care of, Azmin and Pakatan will have a major problem in their hands. They will surely face the wrath of the rakyat over their failure to keep up with their election pledge.

So be warned, Azmin!