Guan Eng flustered over poser on undersea tunnel
GEORGE TOWN: Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was left flustered yesterday after being bombarded with questions on the controversial undersea tunnel and three paired road projects.
Lim appeared frustrated when responding to a series of tough questions by Minister in the Prime Minister ’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong, who had asked whether the state government had stamped and signed the project agreement with the main contractor.
“This is a government. Are we fools for not doing so? Come on. It (the agreement) was stamped and signed in 2013.
“The exco members advised me to answer this question first for the sake of showing how ridiculous this question is,” he said in a press conference yesterday.
The DAP-led state government plans to build the three highways to resolve traffic congestion on the island. It is part of a RM6.3 billion project under- taken by Consortium Zenith, which includes a 7.2km undersea tunnel.
However, the projects are being investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission following numerous controversies in recent months, including the high cost of the RM305 million feasibility studies as well as the 21-month delay in completing them.
Wee, who is MCA deputy president, had also asked Lim to explain why the three paired road projects had yet to take off.
Lim, in response, claimed there were continuous interferences and sabotages by different parties, which was why construction work could not begin.
“We just received the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) approval in late December last year. And before work could begin, people were arrested.
“MACC started its investigation back in 2016 and all of a sudden this year, they start to arrest people?” he asked.