Public Accounts Committee chairperson Azmi Khalid today dismissed talk that a turf war between the cabinet and the public works department over the choice of engineering consultants was to blame for the mishap-plagued Middle Ring Road II (MRR2) project.

parliament action community pac mrr2 highway visit 120808 02 "That (issue of credibility) is not under question. The government did not make a decision (to engage Leonhardt, Andra and Partner) until the recommendation was made by the board of engineers," Azmi told reporters after an on-site briefing by the PWD.

There was talk that the cabinet had initially wanted to appoint a British consultant, but Azmi clarified that the cabinet had in fact selected Leonhardt, Andra and Partner based on the recommendation of the PWD.

"We have been here, we have heard (from PWD), and we think the PWD has been doing a good job. (We are) looking into this matter and from the beginning when they (PWD) did the first repair job - the appointment of the consultant, the appointment of the contractor - these were done properly," he said.

The Kepong stretch of the MRR2 project has been plagued by construction faults, forcing authorities to close off the road on many occasions and drawing fire from irate commuters fed-up with the traffic gridlock in the busy area.

Recently, three of 18 carbon fibre panels on one of its flyovers snapped and fell onto the road below, taking with them several clumps of concrete.

'PWD, consultant responsible'

parliament action community pac mrr2 highway visit 120808 06 Two of six lanes have since been closed to vehicles, and will only be re-opened after a ‘tie-frame’ has been fabricated and fixed onto a faulty pillar to reinforce the structure.

"You want to pass blame? I don’t know how to pass the blame. I’m talking about the current problem. The carbon fibre snapped. Out of 26 done, only one (snapped). Do you blame JKR for that?", Azmi said.

"Perhaps the system used (for the reinforcement of the pillar) has weaknesses. This has not been determined yet. It is being investigated and will take time."

Azmi, added that the rest of the flyover structure was safe. Investigations by the PWD are expected to be completed by the end of this month.

However, Azmi back-pedalled on his assertion yesterday that Works Minister Mohd Zin Mohamed should be called upon to answer for the fiasco, saying, "The responsibility and the expertise is with PWD and the consultant."

parliament action community pac mrr2 highway visit 120808 04 Kamaruddin Jaffar, another PAC member touring the site, said more concrete proposals would be formulated to ensure long-lasting solutions for the MMR2 once the investigation report had been finalised and a full PAC meeting had deliberated on the findings.

"We will ensure that public money is not paid out arbitrarily to contractors," he said.

PAC deputy-chairperson Tan Seng Giaw, who was also present, said the RM74 million the government was claiming from Bumi Highway Sdn Bhd, the builder of the MRR2, comprised an original contract price of RM49.9 million, a RM3.4 million variation order amount and consultants’ fee of about RM14 million. On top of this, PWD imposed another ten percent for its own incurred costs.

Watch a 6-min video of PAC's visit here .