Lawmaker-cum-businessman Si Ka Lon urged the government in an interpellation on Wednesday to explain why it has given Hong Kong’s MTR Corporation Ltd. a 470 million pataca service contract for the light-rail transit (LRT) project.
The government said in a notice published late last month in the Official Gazette (BO) that as the contract for the LRT management and technical support with the current service provider was about to end, the government had decided to sign a two-year contract with MTR Corporation Ltd., paying the Hong Kong railway company 470 million patacas over two years.
The contract with Egis Rail/Fase expired at the end of last month, according to previous reports.
Si said that for the two-year service provider contract, the government was paying almost 1.62 times more than it paid the predecessor. He urged the government to explain what new things the Hong Kong railway company is bringing to the table to warrant such the price hike.
Si also asked the government whether it has any new measures to deter and punish companies that do not comply with the terms of their public sector contracts.
Work began on the LRT project in 2012. The project has been affected by numerous delays over the years.
(Macau News / The Macau Post Daily)
