Explain RM700 million ‘White Elephant’ projects in KL

BY: AFIX REDZUAN
SHAH ALAM, JAN 10: KEADILAN urges Kuala Lumpur City Council (DBKL) Mayor Datuk Seri Mhd Amin Nordin Abd Aziz to explain the projects in KL said to have become ‘white elephants’ costing almost RM700 million.
KEADILAN Communications Director Fahmi Fadzil said The Star newspaper in it’s report entitled ‘From monuments to failures’, had shocked citizens in Kuala Lumpur and raised the view that reforms are needed to save DBKL.
He claimed that on average, RM47 million is spent annually for 15 years, on ‘white elephant’ projects which do not bring any benefits as claimed.
“Ten ‘white elephant’ projects were reported, among which were the flood-warning ballon in Kampung Kasipillay in 2013 which costed RM200,000 and the Integrated Transport Information System (IT IS) for traffic monitoring which was launched in 2002 and cost RM365 million. It is estimated that all of these projects had cost RM700 million.
“This RM700 million can be used to build ten schools with 24 classrooms each, using the Industrialised Building System (IBS) as mentioned by the Education Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid in August 2016.
“RM700 juta ini mungkin boleh diguna untuk membina sepuluh buah sekolah yang mempunyai 24 bilik darjah dengan menggunakan Industrialised Building System (IBS) seperti yang disebut Menteri Pendidikan Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid Ogos lalu.
 
“This amount is more than enough to replace all elevators in the 62 People’s Housing Programme (PPR) and PA throughout Kuala Lumpur at RM500,000 each,” he said in a statement.
Fahmi also questioned how the high costs of these projects could be approved although lasting for years with no accountability on the use of peoples’ money.
“How can the City Advisory Board, with 15 members who are not elected and chaired by the Mayor, approve these ‘white elephant’ projects year after year? Don’t they feel any sense of responsibility towards the citizens?
“The Kuala Lumpur Mayor and Advisory Board Members are urged to provide a comprehensive explanation on these projects and declare other ‘white elephant’ projects which we may not even know about yet,” he said.
He also proposed that tax-payers in the 11 parliamentary areas in Kuala Lumpur appoint at least 11 of the 15 Advisory Board Members based on the ‘no representation no tax’ principle.