SHAH ALAM, Sept 4 — The Selangor government will seek to impose five demands on the federal government if the latter proceeds with the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) currently in limbo, said a state official.
State executive councillor in charge of local authorities Ng Sze Han said these include aligning parts of the railway with the Karak Highway, ensuring proper relocation for affected Orang Asli, and mandatory responses to public complaints and concerns about the project.
He added that Putrajaya must also preserve the forest reserves and Malay reserve land in the affected area through a land-swapping exercise, if need be.
“If the project resumes, Malaysia Rail Link (MRL) needs to take into account these five demands from us.
“MRL must also get the necessary policy approvals from the state government under Section 20(a) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1976,” he said during the 14th Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting here today.
He was answering a question from Bukit Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong.
However, Kinrara assemblyman clarified that there were no talks yet between the two governments regarding the stalled project.
When asked if the state government has conducted a thorough assessment on the project’s possible effects on Selangor residents, Ng said he could not give a suitable answer as the ECRL was currently on hold.
The project was one of three the federal government sought to convince China to cancel over Malaysia’s professed lack of funds and suspicious payment structures in the contracts awarded by the previous Barisan Nasional government.
After an earlier announcement from Beijing that the rail project was terminated, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad clarified to say it was only deferred.
The ECRL is a 688km rail line costing RM81 billion that will link Port Klang in Selangor to Kota Baru in Kelantan.
It was launched last year and had been scheduled for completion in 2024.
