Shah Alam MP Khalid Abdul Samad said today he has been waiting for up to four months for a response from the Public Works Department (PWD) for a visit to the construction site of the problematic Shah Alam Hospital, as well as for a report on the ongoing construction.

NONE As the elected representative for Shah Alam, Khalid ( left ) said, it was his responsibility to know how long more the construction of the hospital, which was initially abandoned in 2010, would take.

He said a letter requesting a site visit and a report were given to the contractor in February. However, within the same month, the company told Khalid to apply for details he wanted from the state PWD.

“After sending a letter to the state PWD, I was told to obtain approval from the federal PWD, and so, I sent a letter. (But) up to now, here has been response.

“This is not about wanting to build a nuclear storage facility. This is a hospital. What is so difficult about giving permission (for a site visit) and the report? They just need to give a briefing and how far the project has gone, as planned.

“This (the hospital) does not belong to Umno. It belongs to the people. (They) are not using Umno’s money but the people’s money, and I am the representative for the people of Shah Alam,” Khalid said.

Khalid, who is also Selangor PAS deputy commissioner, said this during a press conference at his office in Shah Alam today.

Work on the hospital, in Section 7 of Shah Alam, resumed on Oct 19, 2010, after it was re-tendered to the tune of RM410 million.

NONE Then Works Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor ( left ) had said in December 2012 that work was expected to be completed by October this year, with 98 percent of the structural work  having been completed.

When completed, the hospital will provide up to 300 beds and aims to reduce the congestion at the Tuanku Ampang Rahimah Hospital in Klang.

Even so, Khalid claimed, according to inside sources, the project is expected to be delayed by a further 70 days.

Therefore, Khalid wants the new Works Miniser Fadhillah Yusof intervene in the matter.

“I ask that the new works minister takes count of this and give me the permission to visit the site and give me a report on the project’s development,” he added.