Barisan Nasional (BN) backbenchers today brought the hammer down on Works Minister S Samy Vellu. They wanted him to resign or be removed and investigated for several infrastructure scandals over the years.

However, they stopped short of supporting a proposal by the opposition to move for a motion of no-confidence against one of the most senior cabinet members at the Dewan Rakyat, who has served as a minister for 25 years.

Instead, the ruling parliamentarians said the government will take the necessary actions to safeguard its credibility.

During the Budget 2005 debate this morning, the 67-year-old minister came under fire from the backbenchers over the recent cracks that appeared on a busy flyover in Kuala Lumpur and Monday's landslide along the North-South highway.

'Don't protect the crony'

Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) said the government cannot condone any individual's action that could lead to the loss of lives and affect the government's reputation.

"(There is) no more time to discuss frivolous issues, we must recognise the fact that someone has made a mistake and we don't need to protect the crony," he added.

He urged the government to settle the issue immediately and remedy the problems faced by the people.

"If there is anyone that needs to be expelled, expel them for the sake of the people and the country. If there is a necessity to expel the minister, expel him and replace him with a new minister," he said, prompting other backbenchers to chant 'corruption', 'corruption'.

Bung said he was not suggesting any elements of impropriety, but on the same note, added that the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) should investigate if there were any wrongdoings involving the Works Ministry and its officials.

He also added that it was 'silly' of the ministry - which Samy Vellu has led as minister since 1995 - to defend problematic contractors.

Ismail Sahri Yaakob (BN-Bera) questioned Samy Vellu's process of awarding contracts, citing the Mentakab-Temerloh double-lane project, which was supposed to have been completed last year, as an example.

According to him, the project was awarded to BumiHiway Ventures Bhd, the same company which built the Middle Ring Road (MRR2) in Kuala Lumpur that houses the cracked flyover ( photo ).

"This is the result when we award too many projects to the same company. Is there any self-interest in this company? The ACA should probe the minister and the matter to the root," he said.

Jimmy Donald (BN-Sri Aman) also urged the government to take stiff action against anyone involved in corruption pertaining to the MRR2 project.

He said it was the joint-failure of the Public Works Department (under the purview of the Works Ministry) and the auditor-general's department to monitor the road and its financial account.

"I am worried that one day our city's skyscrapers will also collapse and we will start finger-pointing again," he added.

More direct to the point was Loh Seng Kok (BN-Kelana Jaya), who said that at the heart of all these problems 'was the minister'.

Unacceptable explanations

Meanwhile, Dr Wee Ka Siong (BN-Ayer Itam) said the people could not accept Samy Vellu's explanations over the recent scandals.

He was also angered by a letter entitled 'Samy Vellu not speaking off the cuff' written by the minister's press secretary E Sivabalan, published in the New Straits Times today.

Among others, the minister's aide said the public should not draw conclusions and make unfair attacks against the minister over the MRR2 issue by merely reading media reports.

"Where else can the rakyat obtain information if not through media reports? Even we as wakil rakyat (people's representatives), were not given a copy of the report on MRR2 whereas the supervising officer of the project also denied entry to the site," he added.

The Ayer Itam MP also asked Samy Vellu to stop issuing contradictory statements to the public.

"If he doesn't know (about the issue) please shut up, please ask the deputy minister (Mohd Zin Mohamed), who is an engineer or ask the five engineers in this House," said Wee, who is a civil engineer by training.

"The people cannot accept the minister's answer and they will eventually question BN's integrity," he stressed.

On the landslide in Perak, he urged the ministry to seriously consider the recommendations by professional bodies such as the Institution of Engineers Malaysia's paper on mitigation of landslides and hillside development presented several years ago.

Wee said several landslides, including the ones to hit Highland Towers (1993), Genting Highlands (1995) and Bukit Antarabangsa (1999) could have been avoided if the government was more serious in its actions.

'Its destiny'

In his winding-up, Deputy Works Minister Mohd Zin did not respond to the calls for Samy Vellu's resignation or for the minister to be investigated.

On the latest landslide, he said monitoring works were carried out but the landslide was caused by "slope failure at a natural slope".

"Maybe this is destiny and out of human control," he added.

He also told the House that Samy Vellu could not be present for the winding-up as he was attending the cabinet meeting and will later accompany Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to Phuket, Thailand for an official visit.

Earlier during the debate, Fong Po Kuan (DAP-Batu Gajah) proposed that a no-confidence motion be moved against the minister and sought support from the BN backbenchers.

When none of them responded, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang said the backbenchers only knew how to talk loudly but still abided by the 'kowtow' culture.

Lim, who has also repeatedly called for Samy Vellu's resignation, criticised the minister for being irresponsible and describing tragic incidents as an act of God.

Yesterday, Keadilan also demanded for Samy Vellu's resignation as works minister - or face a sacking - following the landslide at Gua Tempurung, Perak, along the North-South highway.