Friday, April 02, 2010

Coalition claims sabotage in water case


The Coalition Against Water Privatisation (CAWP) suspects foul play in its case against the federal government to declassify water concessionaire agreements and audited figures of Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas).

The High Court was to decide today whether to proceed with a judicial review of this longstanding issue but the session ended with no verdict being reached.

According to CAWP coordinator and Klang MP Charles Santiago, two factors contributed to this disappointing outcome.

“Firstly, the Selangor state legal adviser didn't submit all the required documents to the court despite being informed of this beforehand.

“Secondly, the judge has asked for clarification on Syabas position in this case,” he said.

The judge has granted two weeks for resubmission of documents and a response from Syabas. The next mention of the case is scheduled for May 4.

Bu what Santiago found perplexing, however, is the conflicting behaviour of the Selangor chief minister and the state chief legal officer.

“Just a month ago, the state government wrote a letter to the court stating its willingness to declassify the audit reports and concessionaire agreement.

“The letter also acknowledged the people's right to this information.

“But the state legal advisor seems to be taking the federal government's stand on the issue, which is to keep the audit reports under the Official Secrets Act,” he revealed.

The state legal adviser’s stand shocked Santiago.

“I am appalled at this blatant show of indiscipline by the state legal adviser.

“It appears that we are being sabotaged. And it also goes to show that the political master in this case doesn't lie with the state but with the federal government,” he said.

by FMT

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