Chong questions award of RM70 mln Pan Borneo Highway maintenance contract to non-S’wakian-majority-owned firm

KUCHING (Sept 6): The Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) has demanded Works Minister Dato Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi and the Public Works Department (JKR) Sarawak to explain on the award of the lucrative RM70-million contract for three-year maintenance work for Pan Borneo Highway in Sarawak to a company, which is chiefly owned by non-Sarawakians.

DAP Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen said he had done a search on the company, PBH Asset Management Sdn Bhd, which is over 90 per cent owned by Peninsular Malaysians.

“There are two shareholders in PBH Asset, namely Multimur Roadways Sdn Bhd (holding 467,500 shares in PBH Asset) and Infrapasti Sdn Bhd (holding 382,500 shares in PBH Asset).

“Multimur Roadways Sdn Bhd has two shareholders, namely a West Malaysian whose IC bears ’04’ in its seventh and eighth digit (presumably from Melaka) who holds 1,217,500 (96 per cent) shares in Multimur and another shareholder whose IC bears ’13’ in its seventh and eighth digit (Sarawakian) holds 50,000 (4 per cent) shares in Multimur.

“Infrapasti Sdn Bhd has only one shareholder by the name Muliana bin Munir whose IC bears ’10’ in its seventh and eighth digit (presumably from Selangor) and he is a single shareholder holding RM1 paid-up share in Infrapasti,” he said in a statement today.

The statement was issued in response to the Works Ministry having awarded the contract to one PBH Asset Management Sdn Bhd (PBH Asset) and handing over of the Letter of Award by Nanta on Thursday.

With such shareholdings, Chong asserted that PBH Asset is effectively only 2.2 per cent owned by Sarawakians while 97.8 per cent is owned by non-Sarawakians.

Chong, who is also Stampin MP and Padungan assemblyman, said it made no sense to award a RM70-million contract for road maintenance in Sarawak to this company that is only 2.2 per cent Sarawakian-owned.

“This goes against what we have always been fighting for, and that the government should help local entrepreneurs, more so, when the Minister of Works himself is a Sarawakian, a Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) minister,” he said.

He said the minister and the state JKR should also explain the process of selection and inform how many companies participated in the selection process and on what grounds they were all rejected.

“PBH Asset is merely a holding company having only RM257,615 net assets, what expertise and financial capability does this company have to be awarded a RM70-million contract?

“Both the shareholders of PBH Asset also do not have a nature of business in the construction field, what justification and qualification did PBH Asset possess that qualified it to be appointed by the Ministry of Works?” Chong questioned further.

He reiterated that Nanta and JKR Sarawak must provide clear justifications on the questions raised.

“This is especially so given that GPS has always been claiming that it is fighting for the interest of Sarawakians, but contrary to that claim, the award of this road maintenance contract not only did not help local contractors but also jeopardise the public interest of Sarawakian road users,” he emphasised.