Environmental activist Meor Razak Abdul Rahman questioned why the Taman Tugu project would cost RM650 million, when there are less expensive alternatives to preserving nature in Kuala Lumpur.

“It’s a good idea to add more parks and green lungs in Kuala Lumpur, but the question is, why are the estimated costs RM650 million?

“If the government was committed to reforestation in parts of Kuala Lumpur, there is no need to spend so much for that purpose,” the Sahabat Alam Malaysia activist told Malaysiakini when contacted yesterday.

The government could reduce costs by employing the ‘blue ocean’ strategy, he said, by utilising already existing government agencies such as the Forestry Department, Kuala Lumpur City Hall, Agriculture Department and various others.

Not only that, Razak said that environmental NGOs could also be involved in the process, such as through organising tree planting activities.

“Personally, I see this project as more about giving a big project to green capitalists who are under the guise of being ‘eco-friendly’,” he said.

On the other hand, Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), who is one of the project partners, defended the project, saying that it is always better to have more green lungs in the city.

MNS executive director IS Shanmugaraj told Malaysiakini that the piece of land that will be used for the Taman Tugu project was previously not designated as a forest reserve.

“They can change the land title if they want to, it wasn’t under forest reserve or any title. So they could have immediately changed (the title) and develop another condominium.

‘More green lungs better’

Instead, he said, sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional designated that piece of land as a green lung area.

“So more and bigger green lungs for Kuala Lumpur are better,” he said.

He also said that the estimated costs of RM650 million is not just going to building the park, but also for developing accessibility to the park as well as hiring consultants for the projects.

When asked whether the money should have gone to restoring other existing green lung areas in Kuala Lumpur, he said MNS was fighting for those areas too, such as the Taman Rimba Bukit Kiara.

“If Khazanah can do this, whoever is going to develop Bukit Kiara, can they also preserve that?” he questioned.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak had announced that the National Monument (Tugu Negara) and its surroundings would be turned into a 66-acre urban rainforest park with an estimated cost of RM650 million.

The project is to be led by Khazanah, which would foot RM500 million of the bill.

The first phase of the project is expected to be completed in mid-2018 and the final completion is slated for year 2020.

Najib had expressed hope that the ‘mini tropical forest in the city’ would become an iconic part of Kuala Lumpur.

However, the opposition has criticised the project, with PAS describing the project as superfluous during times of hardship for the rakyat.

Meanwhile, PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli had questioned whether the project is a front to raise funds for BN ahead of the 14th general election.