Dr Mahathir says 'not sure, not aware' whether ECRL contract terminated

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 24): Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today he is 'not sure' whether the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) contract has been terminated as reported in the media.

"I am not sure whether the contract has been ended or not. I am not aware [whether it has been terminated]. I just came back from overseas," he said, while affirming that the matter will be raised in the Cabinet meeting today. Dr Mahathir was speaking to reporters after launching the B40 mySalam Protection Scheme here today.

On Friday (Jan 18), theedgemarkets.com, quoting a source, reported that the government has terminated the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning contract awarded to China contractor China Communications Construction Co Ltd (CCCC) for the RM81 billion ECRL project.

It was reported that CCCC was instructed to stop all construction works and services regarding the ECRL project by Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng on July 3 last year until further notice, pending a review.

Today, Dr Mahathir said termination of the ECRL contract involving CCCC will come at a price.

"One way for us to resolve this problem [of lopsided contract terms] is by terminating the contract. But when we terminate the contract, we have to pay compensation. [It will be] plenty of billions [of ringgit]," he said. — theedgemarkets.com

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