Look into cancelled projects, RCI told

Najib: M’sians deserve to know reasons

PETALING JAYA: A Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) must be set up to look into the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project and two pipeline projects which were cancelled, says Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

In a Facebook post yesterday, the former prime minister said the RCI should investigate any wrongdoing.

He said Malaysians deserved to know if the decision to cancel the three projects was based on “reason and not on anger” towards the Barisan Nasional administration or Chinese government.

“It is better for the Pakatan Harapan government to disclose all contracts, feasibility and economic impact studies, and cost-benefit analysis to see if it is beneficial for Malaysia to continue with these three projects or to cancel them,” he said.

Najib, who is Pekan MP, said many of his constituents were disappointed when they learnt that the ECRL project would be cancelled as they could see there was economic benefits to be reaped from it.

“Until those documents are disclosed, I am disappointed and sad for the people in the east coast because they will lose on potential development in their states and a chance to

I am disappointed and sad for the people in the east coast. Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak

raise their economic status to be equal to folk in the west coast,” he said.

Najib said he did not want to comment on Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s remarks on what the latter termed as the “stupidity” of his administration due to the way the contracts were signed.

Najib maintained that the contracts for the projects had exit clauses.

“This is not like the Independent Power Producer ( IPP) concessions or the toll agreements signed during Mahathir’s era where, until now, the Pakatan government cannot fulfil its promise to abolish tolls,” he said.

Dr Mahathir announced the cancellation of the ECRL and the construction of two gas pipelines in Sabah while in China on Tuesday.