TASEK PAUH blogspot

PETALING JAYA (Feb 27, 2007) - A highway concessionnaire released details of its classified agreement with the government in its prospectus for institutional investors 10 years ago, it was revealed today.

Lingkaran Trans Kota Holdings Bhd (Litrak), the concession holder for the Damansara-Puchong Highway, had in the prospectus given a summary of key terms of the agreement which was classified under the Official Secrets Act.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who revealed the prospectus in a press conference today, questioned the motive of the government for continuing to insist the agreement was under the OSA.

"The prospectus has all the details of the agreement. Works Minister Datuk S. Samy Vellu had said everything discussed in the cabinet is under the OSA.

"As such, Litrak, and its two joint global lead managers, Arab-Malaysian Merchant Bank Bhd and Barclays de Zoete Wedd Ltd, should also be investigated by the police as well for revealing the content."

Last month, four opposition leaders - Parti Keadilan Rakyat information chief Tian Chua, treasurer-general Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, PAS treasurer-general Dr Hatta Ramli and DAP non-governmental organisation bureau chief Ronnie Liu - were questioned by the police for alleged violation of the OSA by revealing a copy of a concession agreement in a press conference.

Samy, who initially lambasted the four for revealing "official secrets", recently said the ministry would reveal the agreement as the premier Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had agreed to it, provided a paper was first tabled to the cabinet.

He had said the concession holders had no objections to this.

Lim said the government should drop its investigation against the four men and apologise to them for "selective prosecution and double standards".

Lim said the Litrak prospectus revealed the projected profit after tax of the company from 1997 to 2029 to be RM18.9 billion while the total construction cost was estimated at only RM1.327 billion, inclusive of capitalised interest of RM142.3 million.

"This is at least 15 times the cost that they put in," he said.

He asked whether this was why there was hesitation to make public the agreements.

sun2surf

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

Lim: Say sorry and be a saint

KUALA LUMPUR, 26 Feb 2007 - Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu can transform himself from "Dracula" into a saint if he makes a public apology, opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said.

Lim said Samy Vellu should apologise "for his earlier ‘bloodthirstiness’ in demanding that four opposition leaders be jailed for at least one year for blowing the whistle about the lopsided Litrak LDP concession".

Lim said this in a statement yesterday in reaction to the Works Minister’s interview in the New Sunday Times.

Samy Vellu had attributed his outburst about not being "the bad boy" of tolls to the opposition leader using the word "bloodthirsty" in reference to him and toll hikes.

"He was indirectly saying I’m a Dracula. Only a Dracula goes for blood," he said in the interview.

Lim said Samy Vellu should push for the Official Secrets Act investigation against the four opposition leaders over the toll concession to be halted.

The four opposition leaders Lim was refering to are: Pas treasurer Dr Hatta Ramli, Parti Keadilan Rakyat treasurer Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, Keadilan information chief Tian Chua and Ronnie Liu, who heads the DAP’s bureau on non-governmental organisations.

The four were said to have announced that the government had guaranteed profits to Litrak, the concessionaire for the Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong, in the agreement.

Under Section 8 of the OSA, a conviction for an offence carries a maximum jail term of 12 months.

Lim said yesterday that "Dracula" had not entered his mind when in his statement last Feb 3 he had demanded to know why Samy Vellu was "suddenly so bloodthirsty" as to demand opposition leaders be jailed.

Meawhile, DAP Ipoh Barat MP M. Kulasegaran called on Samy Vellu not to interfere in the DAP’s affairs.

"There is no necessity for catching up in the DAP among party members. I am Kula and he is Karpal. We don’t need outsiders to advise us," Kulasegaran said in reference to Samy Vellu’s observation on the DAP in relation to the MIC.

Samy Vellu had told the New Sunday Times: "No other Indian can come up in the DAP. Karpal Singh (DAP chairman) is very strong, that’s how he has survived. And M. Kulasegaran is trying to catch up with Karpal. Wherever they contest, we know how to deal with them."

Kulasegaran said instead of griping about the DAP, Samy Vellu should think about renewal in the MIC leadership. NSTOnline

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

Apakah ini strategi Samy dan BN untuk melegakan tuntutan orang ramai supaya perjanjian konsesi tol dikeluarkan dari takrif OSA? Kita tunggu percaturan mereka selepas ini. Dalam berita lain, Nazri Aziz memberi 'signal' awal yang kurang memberangsangkan.

"I raised the issue at the last Cabinet meeting and the prime minister (Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) has asked for a Cabinet paper on it to be submitted," he said, speaking to Bernama from London.

Samy Vellu also said that he had consulted the Attorney-General's Chambers for the preparation of the Cabinet paper.

The government decided to allow five highway operators, in and around the Klang Valley, to raise their toll rates starting Jan 1, 2007 in accordance with the concession agreements with these highway concessionaires.

This sparked a huge hue and cry among the general public, and opposition parties used the issue to criticise the government.

Some of these opposition leaders had allegedly obtained copies of the highway concession agreements.

Early this month, four opposition party leaders were called in by the police to give statements on the allegation.

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

KUALA LUMPUR, February 12 -: The Works Minister merely announces toll rates that are decided by the Cabinet to the public and does not make any decision on the matter at all.

Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said the Opposition, which had been criticising him for the increase in toll rates, was “immature”.

“They think that I decide on the increase and go for my blood,” he said yesterday.

Samy Vellu said when the toll charges for the Damansara-Puchong Expressway was fixed at RM1.80, he had opposed it by saying that it would burden the people.

“It was then suggested that the toll rates be brought down to RM1.60 with a compensation of RM150mil to be paid by the Government as well as a year’s extension of the concession period,” he said.

Referring to DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng’s statement that he would recommend to the Government to buy over the tolled highways if he was the Works Minister, Samy Vellu said the opposition politician clearly did not understand how the Government worked.

“The Government would have to cough up RM500bil to buy up the highways and this is a huge amount,” he said.

To another question on the toll charges for the newly constructed Smart Tunnel in the city centre, Samy Vellu said the ministry would submit a paper to the Cabinet.

“We have not prepared the paper yet. We will make an announcement when the time comes,” he said. TheStarOnline

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

theSun says - Get rid of the OSA

February 6 - That sections of the government are relying on the Official Secrets Act (OSA) to keep secret activities which are NOT detrimental to the security of the country is very evident. The police are pursuing a case where an agreement said to be between the government and a toll-road operator has been made public.

How could the country's security be threatened by merely disclosing the terms of an agreement between the toll-road operator and the government?

In fact such a disclosure would help to answer the question of whether the government has been too generous in favour of toll-road operators when the agreements were signed. It will be in the public interest that such documents were made public.

But the OSA of 1972, amended to give it draconian powers in 1987, not only forces a mandatory jail sentence of at least a year on offenders but basically leaves the definition of an official secret purely in the hands of the government and its officers.

Thus, there is no bearing whatsoever on the security of the country whether a piece of information is classified as secret or not. The courts are prevented from making any ruling on this under Section 16A, "Certificate by a public officer to be conclusive evidence."

Under this section, "A certificate by a minister or a public officer charged with any responsibility in respect of any ministry, department or any public service or the mentri besar or the chief minister of a state or by the principal officer in charge of the administrative affairs of a state certifying to an official document, information or material that it is an official secret shall be conclusive evidence that the document, information or material is an official secret and shall not be questioned in any court on any ground whatsoever."

In other words, anything, including the number of cups coffee consumed in a government canteen, can be classified as an official secret if the government so desired.

It is time we got rid of this act which does hardly anything to protect the official secrets which may endanger the security of the country. Instead it gives much leeway for government officials at all levels to hide their inefficiency and corruption, making a mockery of the declared aim of making ours an open society.

In its place we should have a Freedom of Information Act, much like in countries such as India, which would guarantee the public the right to information about the government in all aspects except those which must be kept secret for the sake of the security of the country.

The paradigm shift to a culture of openness and accountability took place in most of the world many years ago. But we not only continue to keep outdated and draconian legislation in the statute books but allow government officials to blatantly use it to suppress information which should legitimately be in the public domain.

That is truly deplorable and needs instant remedy through the legislature. sun2surf

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

Pengerusinya, Yeo Yang Poh berkata, perjanjian itu sepatutnya dibuka kepada orang ramai untuk mereka mengetahui keadaan sebenar dan seterusnya memahami serta menyokongnya.

‘‘Sekiranya kesilapan dilakukan dan sesetengah bahagian perjanjian itu melibatkan kepentingan orang awam, kesilapan itu sepatutnya diumumkan dan tindakan untuk mengatasinya perlu diambil.

‘‘Satu kesilapan akan menjadi masalah besar sekiranya ia terus dirahsiakan,’’ katanya dalam satu kenyataan di sini hari ini.

Sebelum ini, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) mendakwa parti itu memiliki dokumen perjanjian konsesi tol.

Berikutan pendedahan itu, Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi menegaskan, kerajaan boleh mengambil tindakan sekiranya dokumen itu diklasifikasikan di bawah Akta Rahsia Rasmi (OSA).

Yang Poh berkata, setiap rakyat berhak untuk mengetahui apa yang berlaku seperti seorang pembayar cukai berhak untuk mengetahui bagaimana wangnya digunakan.

Dalam kes yang sama kata Yeo, seorang pembayar tol mempunyai hak untuk mengetahui bagaimana kadar bayaran dikenakan atau dinaikkan dalam perjanjian yang dilakukan.

Yeo menambah, dalam sesebuah negara yang mengamalkan sistem demokrasi, kerajaan tidak boleh dengan mudah mengklasifikasikan sesuatu dokumen sebagai rahsia dan seterusnya berharap tiada soalan akan ditimbulkan mengenainya atau mengapa ia perlu dipersoalkan.

‘‘Keadaan ini sama sekali tidak menggunakan peruntukan OSA dengan betul,’’ katanya.

Kata beliau, alasan-alasan yang kukuh perlu diberikan sebelum sesuatu dokumen diklasifikasikan sebagai rahsia rasmi dan dikaitkan dengan isu-isu keselamatan. UtusanOnline

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 5, 2007): Federal police investigators today searched the Parti Keadilan Rakyat information office and its publicity head Tian Chua's house for a highway concession agreement that had been classified as official secret.

It is learnt a federal CID team armed with a search warrant and led by ASP Rajakopal Arumugam searched the office in Brickfields at 3pm.

An hour later,Tian Chua accompanied them to his house in Sentul where a similar search was carried out.

However, the raiding team left empty-handed.

The raids began at 2pm after police had questioned and recorded statements from Tian Chua and three other senior opposition party members for over three hours in the Bukit Aman federal police headquarters over their possession of the official secret document from 10.30am.

The other three summoned for questioning were treasurer-general Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, PAS treasurer-general Dr Hatta Ramli and DAP's publicity bureau head Ronnie Liu.

They had arrived at Bukit Aman at 10am, accompanied by supporters from their parties before meeting with police investigators.

The four men then stepped into Bukit Aman accompanied by their lawyers A.Sivanesan, Hanipah Maidin, Shamsul Iskandar and Kamarul Hisyam.

According to Tian Chua, the sessions were headed by Arumugam and three other officers. All four politicians were interviewed by an officer each in separate rooms.

Speaking to reporters later, Tian Chua said they were asked "routine questions" and were not compelled to hand over any document.

He said they were not told what would happen next.

"We oppose the use of the Official Secrets Act to cover up such agreements between the government and highway concessionaire. We will continue to protest toll hikes." he said.

The OSA probe was triggered by a police report lodged by the public last week at the Damansara police station.

Works Minister Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu had also said recently he would inform the Attorney-General's office to take appropriate action against those who stole the documents which were revealed in a press conference by the politicians last month. sun2surf

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

OSA probe over toll documents

KUALA LUMPUR, 3 February - Four opposition officials are being investigated under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) over the disclosure of a toll concession agreement.

Criminal investigations director Comm Datuk Christopher Wan Soo Kee said the police have given them notice to be present at Bukit Aman on Monday.

The four are PAS treasurer Dr Hatta Ramli, Parti Keadilan Rakyat treasurer Khalid Ibrahim, PKR information chief Tian Chua and the DAP’s Ronnie Liu, who heads the party’s bureau on non-governmental organisations.

Wan said a police report was lodged at the Damansara police last week. “We want them to assist us in our investigations,” he said. The four are alleged to have disclosed the contents of a document that was purportedly an agreement signed between the Government and the toll concessionaires.

They had claimed that the Government had, in the agreement, guaranteed profits to the concessionaires.

On Jan 25, following the disclosure, Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said the Cabinet would take appropriate action against the person (or persons) who had stolen and exhibited the agreement.

He had said that the agreement was solely between the Government and the company and was a confidential document.

He had also suggested to the Cabinet to ask the Attorney-General’s office to take appropriate action against those who stole the document and exhibited it without any authority.

Those convicted are liable to be jailed up to a year under Section 8 of the OSA.

Commenting on the investigation yesterday, Samy Vellu said the Government had no choice but to act against those who make public the contents of documents classified as official secrets. theStarOnline

Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 25, 2007): The Cabinet is not prepared to make public the toll agreements inked between the government and highway concessionaires, says Works Minister Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu.

"I have also suggested that the Cabinet take appropriate action against the person (or persons) who had stolen and exhibited an agreement. The agreement is solely between the government and the company and it is a secret document," said Samy, adding that he brought up the matter at the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

"It is classified secret ... a restricted document of the government. It has been stolen by some people and we have suggested we are going to ask the Attorney-General's office to take appropriate action against those who stole the document and exhibited it without the authority, and they have to pay for it," Samy said.

Asked whether this was the Cabinet's decision, Samy said: "This is what has been suggested to the Cabinet."

Samy spoke in a press conference today after chairing a MIC central working committee meeting in the MIC headquarters on Jalan Rahmat.

In a press conference early this month, the Coalition Against Toll Hike (Protes) revealed a copy of the agreement between the government and Lingkaran Trans Kota Sdn Bhd (Litrak) to reporters.

Protes also demanded the government to reveal how the government had reached its agreements with other highway concessionaire companies.

In an immediate response, Parti Keadilan Rakyat information chief Tian Chua, who is also a Protes member, the Cabinet's decision confirmed what the coalition had said earlier that the content of the contract was unfavourable to the public.

"The government needs to explain how and why this contract had been signed. Instead of being transparent, they (the government) have decided to declare this an Official Secrets Act document.

"It's greatly unfair to the public as they are the ones who pay taxes and tolls," he told theSun.

He said Protes had decided to take the risk before divulging the document in order to tell the public the truth.

"The government is subsidising a big sum of money to the concessionaire companies and these monies come from the public. They've the right to know how the contract was drafted and why the government so willingly accepting terms that clearly disadvantaged tax payers," he added. sun2surf

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Labels: Berita, Malaysia, OSA, Tol