Protests against the proposed 10 percent hike in the toll rates for the North-South Expressway mounted today with DAP staging a picket in Perak and PAS vowing to organise a nationwide 'Don't Pay Toll Day' campaign next month.

DAP deputy secretary M Kulasegaran, DAP said the picket was held at the Ampang toll plaza in Ipoh today with several non-governmental organisations and the public participating.

On Wednesday, Works Minister S Samy Vellu announced that toll charges for all vehicles using the expressway will be increased by 10 percent from Jan 1. The new rate for the next three years will be 12.36 sen per kilometre, up from the present 11.24 sen.

The minister also said under the revised agreement, toll charges would be increased to 13.60 sen per kilometre from 2005 to 2007 and raised to 14.96 sen per kilometre for the 2008 to 2010 period.

Describing the increase as "fair and minimal", Samy said the government would have to compensate the expressway's concessionaire, Project Lebuhraya Utara Selatan (Plus), as the quantum for the increase was lower than that agreed between the two parties.

"We have allowed the concessionaire to offset their interest payments for RM1.65 billion and also capital tax payments in lieu of compensation payments for the next three years," said Samy.

The toll charges were supposed to have been increased on Jan 1, 1998 but was deferred due to the economic crisis then.

'High-level secret'

However, Kulasegaran argued that such 'goodies' given to toll operators only created a 'win-win' situation for them.

"At the end of the day, ordinary taxpayers are made to sacrifice for the well-being of the concessionaires," he said in a statement.

Kulasegaran said until today the government is not willing to make public the terms and conditions for which concessionaires were allowed to build and operate highways and impose "ever-increasing toll charges".

"When questioned in Parliament, the government says the agreement is a high-level secret document which the public is not entitled to have access to.

"However, since the agreement is so glaringly unfair to the taxpayers, the government must disclose the terms and conditions," he stressed.

Government bail-out

Meanwhile, PAS described the proposed expressway toll hike as a 'deadly blow' to the people and reflected the uncaring attitude of the government.

PAS Youth Chief Mahfuz Omar claimed the government was trying to 'balance' its decision to pay a bonus for civil servants this year.

"But it is unfortunate that only 800,000 civil servants received the bonus but 22 million people have to suffer because of the toll hike," said Mahfuz in a statement today.

The Youth leader warned that the hike would cause inflation and encourage other highway concessionaires to seek an increase in toll charges as well.

According to Mahfuz, there could also be a 'hidden agenda' behind the hike as Plus belongs to an ailing 'crony company' - United Engineers Malaysia Bhd - which was bailed out by the government recently.

"In other words UEM and Renong (the parent company) are Umno's companies and the toll hike is to revive UEM and to help Umno for the coming 2004 general elections," he said

Mahfuz stressed that his party will not be silent about the hike and will organise a 'Don't Pay Toll Day' campaign at all toll plazas in the country starting Jan 1.

An average of 160,000 vehicles use the North-South Expressway daily from Bukit Kayu Hitam, Perlis, in the north to Skudai, Johor, in the south.