KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — DAP deputy secretary-general Liew Chin Tong has called Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong "defensive” in the latest among a series of public exchanges between the two, over the rising traffic congestion in the Klang Valley.

In a Facebook post today, Liew said that neither he nor former transport minister Anthony Loke had put all the blame on Wee or the Transport Ministry (MoT).

"I have no idea why Wee was so defensive,” said the Johor DAP chief.

"Sometimes, I wonder what is actually his duty and role as transport minister.”

On May 31, Liew had commented on two statements reportedly made by Wee: the first being that there were too many vehicles on Malaysian roads; and the second, that the government will consider increasing the fare of public transport.

"My contention was simple — to reduce the usage of private vehicles, the government needs to support public transport, especially buses, with subsidies so that model shift between private cars and public transport could occur.

"Hiking fares for public transport now will force people to continue using private cars, and if they cannot afford, they switch to motorcycles, thus causing more road accidents and deaths,” said Liew.

In response to Liew’s comments, Wee was quoted by Free Malaysia Today (FMT) as saying that it was unfair to pin the blame for the country’s traffic congestion on MoT.

Wee reportedly added that there were numerous construction projects currently ongoing throughout the Klang Valley, which were causing an inconvenience to commuters, and that these projects were under the Works Ministry, and not the Transport Ministry.

He also reportedly further noted that city planning fell under the purview of city councils, while enforcement of road use was the joint responsibility of the police and MoT.