The government will continue to compensate Plus Expressway Bhd following the government decision to freeze scheduled increases in toll rates for four highways which the company operates for a period of five years.

sk devamany “We have got to recognise and respect agreements,” Deputy Minsiter in the Prime Minister's Department K Devamany ( right ) said when met at the parliament lobby after the Budget 2011 announcement by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today.

Devamany, whose portfolio covers the Economic Planning Unit, said he was in the dark on the details of the plan to stall the increase in toll prices.

Plus has been granted a concession agreement that allows it to revise toll rates every three years. The last scheduled hike in rates was stalled in 2008.

This means that the government will have to increase the amount compensated to Plus beginning 2011. The amount last year stood at RM850 million.

The opposition have accused the government of drafting a lopsided concession agreement that allows scheduled rises in toll prices that do not take externalities into account.

Contradictory statements

Deputy Finance Minister Donald Lim however sparked some confusion over the matter when he said that the government will not fork out more money to offset Plus’ loss of revenue.

“(They) will not be compensated because I think they have enough profit,” he said.

chua soi lek and donald lim mca party election debate 151008 07 When it was pointed out to him that the government is contractually obliged to pay Plus compensation over any freeze in toll rates, he simply said the government will explain the situation in future.

“There will be an announcement on that. You be patient about it,” Lim ( left ) told reporters.

The contradictory statements by the two deputy ministers only added weight to scepticism over the government’s spending habits following the planned freeze in toll rates.

DAP publicity secretary Tony Pua stressed that there are too many questions surrounding the plan, raising concerns that more public funds would be spent to sustain the controversial agreement.

“Is it true that the government is going to pay compensation to Plus? How are they going to finance this? We don’t know,” he said, urging the government to come clean on the plan.