Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz has described a plan put forward by Jalan Sultan landowners affected by the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project as “a solid alternative” and will raise it with Prasarana.

“They were very detailed (in their plan), they are engineers, they know what they are talking about,” he said after a meeting with the Save Jalan Petaling and Jalan Sultan Action Committee which was arranged by Pandan MP Ong Tee Keat.

Ong is a former student of SJK(C) Confucian which is located near Jalan Sultan.

NONE The committee was represented by Kuala Lumpur-Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCH) secretary-general Yong Yew Wei ( right ), an engineer by training, who helped to present the plan to Nazri.

Nazri was to raise the matter during yesterday’s cabinet meeting but could not do so as it had to be cut short for the Prime Minister’s Office open house event, but added he will now deal directly with Prasarana.

"I have contacted the managing director of Prasarana, Shahril Mokhtar, he is in the US at the moment and will only return on Aug 27, I will meet him when he returns," he said.

NONE Nazri ( centre in photo ) added that he was briefed by the committee that the MRT should ideally run under wide roads and not take sharp turns.

"They suggested a new alignment that will run under Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock to Jalan Tun Perak and Jalan Pudu, as it would be  smooth and gentle.

"As I understand it, according to them, it may even cost less because we will not need to acquire anything on top, there are no buildings and the road is wide," he said.

Ong, who led the delegation, said he will also be speaking today to Bukit Bintang landowners affected by similar acquisition moves.

Echoing this, Nazri said he was also willing to help these landowners if they wanted.

NONE "I support what they want, I love heritage buildings... Development should take into account the preservation of history, this is a contemporary thing," he said.

However, Nazri stressed that if any lands were acquired, it is not meant for commercial purposes.

"I don't think it is going to be acquisition for commercial purposes, but for the station. If it is not used for the station... then it must be bought at a commercial price, but if it is at the station then if they want to build a high-rise building, nothing can be done, how can you own the land but not the air," he said.

Meanwhile, DAP announced that it will be holding a forum on the issue, entitled 'MRT: Are Malaysians Being Taken for a Ride'.

The panel for the forum scheduled for Sept 26 at the KLSCH at 7.30pm will consist of MPs, NGO representatives, and tentatively, a representative from the Land Public Transport Comission (Spad).