Azmin: Mega projects to be reviewed

PUTRAJAYA: The government will review mega projects and projects which have been approved by the previous administration, said Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali.
He said some of the projects would need to be reviewed in terms of their viability, as some were hastily executed in the run-up to the 14th General Election recently, Bernama reported.
"We will see if they are beneficial or otherwise, as we also have to consider the legal implications if the projects are halted," he told reporters.
Mohamed Azmin had reported for duty at 7.45am today, and held a briefing with officers from the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and the Prime Minister's Department.
"We want to revisit all mega projects approved by the previous administration and we will also want to renegotiate the terms, but if the projects have not been carried out, we will only focus on those which will have a direct impact on the people," he said.
The projects to be reviewed include the East Coast Rail Link and the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail.
"We need to look at what happened and we want to make sure that the whole process is transparent and open. Let me sit down with the relevant authorities and agencies before we decide what to do next.
"We must be open and very transparent in procurement processes," Mohamed Azmin said.
He said that the country's debt level was a major concern for the new administration.
"We have discussed about it this morning and we need to look at factors which contributed to this huge, almost RM1 trillion debt.
"Part of it was because the process was not transparent and open, and most of the major projects were not budgeted in the national budget, it was off-budget," he added.
On his job scope as the minister of Economic Affairs, he said the EPU was one of the portfolios under his ministry.
"Based on my discussions with Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad last week, there are several important portfolios which will be placed under the ministry's purview, which will be determined by him. I will be informed by the Chief Secretary to the Government, Tan Sri Dr Ali Hamsa soon," he said.
Mohamed Azmin, who is still acting as the Selangor mentri besar, was sworn in along with 12 other Cabinet ministers in a ceremony before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V at Istana Negara in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.