The government must explain why the Selangor water restructuring agreement must be kept an official secret when there is nothing sensitive in it, the Selangor menteri besar said today.

 

Speaking to the media today, Mohamed Azmin Ali said he has viewed the document and found no reason for it to be classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

 

"There is a need to explain why (the state's application to publicly disclose the document) is rejected, because the agreement does not involve national security issues.

 

"It is merely a business contract between two parties. Why the need for it to be hidden from view?" Azmin said.

 

"If the (agreement's) terms involve protecting the people, then there is no reason for the federal government to block the document from being disclosed to the public," he added.

 

Azmin also asked what is it that Energy Minister Maximus Ongkili claims the attorney-general (AG) had said on the refusal of Putrajaya to grant Selangor's application to reveal the agreement.

 

"What was (the AG's) advice? I want to know, because there must be a justification as to why the document is vehemently being blocked (from disclosure)" he said.

 

The menteri besar was commenting to the press after officiating the monthly state departmental meetings in Shah Alam, his first as the new menteri besar.

Azmin was sworn in as the 15th Selangor menteri besar on Sept 23.

'No official reply yet'

Azmin on Oct 2 said the state government will write to Putrajaya to request that the details of the water restructuring agreement be made public.

He said he has not received an official letter from the aforementioned ministry in relation to the rejection of the state’s application.

The MB said the document must be revealed to the public, not because the water deal is to be cancelled, but for the rakyat’s interests.

“It is only fair if I scrutinise the letter first, on why they have rejected the state’s application for the water deal to be disclosed publicly.

“I am not going to cancel the agreement, but there must be transparency, if not it will only burden the rakyat,” Azmin said.

Last Saturday, Ongkili (left) was reported saying the contents of the water deal cannot be revealed based on the advice of the Attorney-General’s Chambers.

The water deal courted controversy when PKR leaders claimed former MB Abdul Khalid Ibrahim had not discussed the deal thoroughly with them, and was one of the supporting reasons for his eventual expulsion from the party.

However, Khalid managed to rush the signing of the deal with Putrajaya before he handed office to Azmin.

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