A consumer group has joined in to pressure the government to disclose all its toll agreements with various concessionaires.

Yesterday, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) had revealed the agreement between the government and Litrak, which operates the Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong (LDP) highway.

Responding to this, the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) said the agreement was "one-sided and burdened the people."

LDP saw the sharpest increase among the five Klang Valley highways whose toll rates went up effective Jan 1.

"The tax paying rakyat should be in the know of all the terms in any agreement that the government is party to as ultimately it is the rakyat that bears the financial burden.

"All agreements containing unfair terms should be amended immediately either through negotiations or otherwise," CAP president SM Mohamed Idris said in a statement today.

He called for the toll hike to be halted until a full enquiry is carried out.

Shrouded in secrecy

At a press conference yesterday, PKR information bureau chief Tian Chua took the risk of facing action under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) when he revealed the 200-page document which is purportedly the agreement entered into by Litrak and the government on April 23, 1996.

Toll agreements have been shrouded in secrecy as they are not subject to public or Parliament scrutiny. The government can also classify such documents as OSA and enforce it retrospectively.

The opposition party claimed the agreement was drafted in a way that gives the government little power and turns Litrak into a money-making machine.

In view of this, PKR and its allies in the Coalition Against Toll Hike urged the government to reveal all toll agreements.

The latest hike elicited strong reactions from various groups, including MCA, whose members staged a protest along the LDP last Friday.

The Coalition Against Toll Hike, comprising opposition and civil society groups, has planned another protest this Sunday along the LDP. The protestors will be gathering in front of the Sunway Pyramid shopping mall.

The organiser is expecting a huge turnout for the protest.