YOURSAY | ‘Prove that the ECRL is more than an expensive white elephant.’
Deal inked - ECRL back on track, cost slashed by RM21.5b
Shovelnose: Yes, RM21.5 billion from the original RM65.5 billion cost of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) has been shaved off, but would that make it feasible, and will this cost be recouped?
We can say that the previous regime locked us into this mess, and doled out close to RM20 billion in advance, which would never be returned anyway. It is a project that we neither need nor can afford anytime in the near future.
I would like to see if any substantial industrial growth pops up along the route, particularly in the east coast. Otherwise, this fun park ride would not even pay for its own operational and maintenance upkeep.
Anonymous_3f4b: The ECRL getting back on track is nothing to shout about. Costs have been slashed by RM21.5 billion – in all likelihood, the project will use inferior quality materials, see fewer stations being built, bypass the construction of tunnels in the main range by changing the alignment, utilise less labour, and see a prolonged construction time, similar to the LRT3, causing misery and inconvenience to commuters' daily routines.
The Wakandan: RM44 billion is the price we have to pay to salvage the obviously shady deal signed by former premier Najib Abdul Razak. To go ahead with the ECRL in its original form would be tantamount to suicide, it’s just too expensive and massive a project.
To abandon it would be to renege on the contract with China, in which we would pay a hefty sum. One way or the other, we are going to lose. This is just about cutting losses.
Anonymous 1547638559190: This is a good step forward at least in reducing costs and continuing a cordial bilateral relationship with this new economic giant.
Anonymous_1527925538: Thank you, Daim Zainuddin. The rakyat appreciates the hard work and sleepless nights the former finance minister put into renegotiating the contract with a shrewd country like China.
Newday: Prove that this project will actually be profitable in itself – not just for those eagerly snapping up land along the proposed route.
Many experts have seriously questioned the feasibility of this project, yet the current government still pushed this potentially expensive white elephant through.
Procol Harum: One can call it a cost saving or reduction, but who cares, as long as the project is not being overpriced to pay for something else. Let's not be too pedantic. Life goes on.
P Gunasegaram: It's a lousy deal, even at RM36 billion as I wrote here. This is RM8 billion more. There is no redress for the pipeline to nowhere undertaken by Chinese companies that cost in all close to RM10 billion.
It still remains among the most expensive of projects of this nature in the world. Let's wait for the full details of the deal to come out on Monday.
Malaysia’s RM36 billion railway to hell
David Dass: P Gunasegaram writes to give the public perspective on the issue. That the ECRL was a corrupt contract, we all know. The Pakatan Harapan government itself has told us that many times.
That the price was inflated, we know because the government told us. It began at RM35 billion and ended up at RM65 billion. We were even told that one contractor offered to do it for RM10 billion.
That RM20 billion was paid before any work was done, we also know because the government told us. And we were also told that the ultimate cost, adding interest, would be RM100 billion. The government told us that.
The government also told us that it was not operationally viable.
Gunasegaram did not 'manufacture' these facts. What he did was to give us some perspective on the issue.
The comparisons with Singapore were particularly interesting. We appreciate the complexity of facing off a powerful country like China. They are our biggest trading partner. What happens if they stop buying our palm oil and investing in the country?
But is this how we conduct our relationship with powerful countries? Bow our heads and say, 'Yes sir?'
Can Beijing deny that this and the pipeline contracts were corruptly entered into on both sides? They are unconscionable. The train will never be viable. Its implementation will be burdensome for us.
The Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail was not a corrupt contract. Singapore is our second largest trading partner. We had no difficulty suspending the contract. We considered it too expensive for us.
We have RM1 trillion of debt. Can we afford a train that we do not need?
Wira: Gunasegaram, when you renegotiate a signed deal, you are already starting from an inferior position. It takes a lot of goodwill from the Chinese and Malaysian sides for the deal to be renegotiated.
Try renegotiating that water deal with Singapore, if you think it is easy. So don't simply complain that the new ECRL deal is still a lopsided deal.
The Analyser: Did anyone ever talk about an ECRL before Najib hatched this plan? Was such a rail project in anyone’s long-term plans?
Of course it wasn't. Because there has never been demand for such a service. And besides, long-term planning is an unknown concept in Malaysia.
The ECRL has more to do with other Najib-linked mega-plans that have been screwed, such as the Tun Razak Exchange and his dependence on the Chinese for ready cash.
But Malaysians have been fooled by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad into thinking that development means infrastructure, whereas there is no support for such a concept.
Advanced nations only develop infrastructure after the groundwork for a stable society is in place.
The exception that proves the rule is the oil-rich Gulf states, which have overblown and unliveable infrastructure projects.
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