Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyperson Azmin Ali has called for greater transparency in the state’s water restructuring exercise with the federal government at the Selangor state assembly sitting today.

 

He wants the draft of the heads of agreement to be tabled in the state assembly for feedback first, and for a preamble to be inserted in the document stating that it will not be subject to the Official Secrets Act.

 

“I ask that what has happened before does not repeat, where the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the state and federal government has caused much anxiety amongst consumers because of a lack of transparency and openness in the MOU’s contents,” he said.

 

The MOU signed on Feb 26, allows the state to forcibly takeover the assets of Selangor’s four water concessionaires, while the federal government gets the necessary permits to build the Langat 2 water treatment plant, hence ending a long-standing stalemate.

 

However the move took even Pakatan Rakyat leaders by surprise, and the document remained a state secret until it was declassified in mid-March.

 

Contents unknown

The head of agreement - which Azmin said he heard would be signed between the state and federal government in a few days - is a follow-up to the MOU, but Azmin complained that its contents remain unknown.

 

He argued that greater transparency will help curb market speculation, and is in line with Selangor’s position as one of two states in the country with a Freedom of Information Enactment.

 

Nevertheless, Azmin defended Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim ( right) when Sungai Panjang assemblyperson Budiman Mohd Zohdi queried whether Khalid had been ‘ill-advised’ when the MOU was classified as an official secret.

 

“I see this as a collective responsibility between the menteri besar, the state exco members, and the members of this assembly.

 

“Therefore I don’t want to revisit what has already happened, but it becomes a lesson for us that in our efforts to serve the people, it should be done openly.

 

“I think the state government has the right to lobby the federal government not to classify it as an official secret,” he replied.