KUALA LUMPUR: The controversial Shah Alam Hospital has been reopened for a new tender, Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor said today.
Shaziman said his ministry would be appointing a “white knight” contractor through a limited tender procurement method to finish the job.
"The advertisement for the tender was issued on Nov 26 and will close on Dec 17," he said at the Dewan Rakyat.
Shaziman was disputing allegations of cronyism made by Shah Alam PAS lawmaker Khalid Samad who was moving a censure motion against the minister.
The RM10 pay-cut motion was moved following the minister's inability to tackle alleged discrepancies in the various mega-construction projects, including the Shah Alam Hospital.
Ballooning costs
Khalid was questioning the whopping increase in cost of the Shah Alam Hospital project, which was initially estimated to cost taxpayers RM300 million but later ballooned to RM482.6 million.
It was scheduled for completion this month but has been extended to June, 2011. The delay arose amidst allegations of malpractices which Khalid claimed resulted from directly awarding the project to incapable Umno-linked crony companies.
The contract was awarded to a company called Sunshine Fleet Sdn Bhd. It was approved by Shaziman's predecessor under the Ninth Malaysia Plan.
Despite the attacks, Shaziman said that contracts awarded through direct negotiations only amounted to 5% of all government projects tendered out.
These contracts awarded take into consideration the high-profile nature of the projects. Issues like security and expertise are often the criteria used to justify the practice, said Shaziman.
He also shrugged off allegations of irregularities in the delay, saying the postponement was approved by the government.
"It was approved to ensure that the project will not be disrupted following the increase in construction material and fuel prices," explained Shaziman.
Khalid, who disagreed, said the point of contention was not the 5% but the amount of taxpayers' money involved in the projects.
The main idea behind any tender-awarding process was to attain the best quality at the lowest price, which the government has failed to practise in light of the constant increases in projects cost like the new national palace and the National Cancer Institute, Khalid added.
Motion rejected again
The cost of the new palace was initially estimated at RM394.8 million but soared to RM650 million. The National Cancer Institute's initial cost was RM340 million in 2007 but rose to RM700 million.
Khalid again accused the government of cronyism in awarding the projects to companies linked to Umno.
But Shaziman insisted that the contracts were awarded for valid reasons and that the valuation of the costs were done thoroughly by the Economic Planning Unit.
The debate between Khalid and Shaziman eventually turned into a chaotic verbal jostle between the two sides of the House.
Deputy Speaker Ronald Kiandee was forced to calm tempers down. The motion was subsequently rejected.
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