YB Wee Choo Keong has 18 questions on the proposed RM1.7 billion Labu low cost carrier terminal (LCCT) instead of one for his Question of the Week #42. Most of the questions are for Sime Darby so I expect Brenden Pereira, the advisor to Sime, to be busy. Unless he and Sime don't care at all?Tony Fernandes of Air Asia has a blog so we can expect him to say something about Wee's latest posting.
One thing's clear; that is, people are more suspicious now about the relevance of some projects to their well-being. and they are demanding greater transparency and they want the truth.
Do we really need the Labu project or is it part of the outgoing adminitration's "midnight regulations" sorely needed to enrich some cronies?
Unless the parties concerned come up with very convincing answers (and not some insider's propaganda orchestrated by the same person who's also advising a proponent of the Labu project) the LCCT will not get the full support of the taxpayers. And that would be a shame.I found the first poster in a mail from one very pissed Abdul Sr. last week. The pumpkin poster was sent to me by a graphic artist with a daily. They are self-explanatory, I guess.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Labu LCCT for Malaysia or for Sime?
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In the interests of transparency, would AirAsia/Sime post the entire EPU "approval" letter for public scrutiny ?
ReplyDeleteMy understanding is that the EPU is happy to let the project proceed if "not a sen of public money" is used. Is the EPF considered public money ? Is the AirAsia/Sime consortium prepared to build the usual connectivities (road, rail, ATC, CIQ) at their cost ?
Lastly, can AirAsia/Sime stop calling this project a "terminal" when in fact it is a brand new airport ?
Godfather
Labu LCCT is for SIME and for AA
ReplyDeletethis project is an ego massage for Zubir ( musa hitam?) and Tony ( kali? )
Rocky,
ReplyDeleteI for one agree KLIA is underutilized, in Bangkok that country's super international airport also housed Low Cost carriers such as Air Asia.
I personally the government will scrapped the idea and KLIA will be again considered for Air Asia.
Air Asia? dont you ever trust them about booking early to enjoy good fares.
ReplyDeleteWe booked 6 tickets in mid December 2008 for a trip to Australia in early March 2009. Fare was RM1,900 return.
Today, we just checked. Now its only RM1,300+ per person for similat itinenary.
Travellers, just dont be hoodwinked by Air Asia. You run the risk of non-travel by booking early with no refund, and get screwed big time on the fare.
Tony, you read this?
Labu to pass on savings to consumers? I dont trust you one bit after this incident.
If AA is enjoying more traffic than MAS, then MAS should shift to LCCT.
ReplyDeleteair asia is in deep shit. Someone just suggested that it's about time MAS or MAHB take over the financially struggling airline for RM1.00.
ReplyDeletefirst thing first. who is the owner of that 3000 acres land???
ReplyDeletewill it be the same case like the klang scandal?
Off Topic
ReplyDeleteRocky, why don't you ask Sime Darby about their RM800m fiasco in Qatar?
Heard that they did some projects there and some madness has resulted in huge losses (RM800m).
Build a brand new airport for Air Asia needs only? It sound really arrogant. I still like the idea of having an integrated KLIA with ERL connectivity. New Labu airport connected to KTM Kommuter will be put off for tourist visiting Malaysia. Imagine what a nightmare tourist will get traveling on our great KTM Kommuter.
ReplyDeleteThis whole Labu LCC Terminal shit is about bailing ot Air Asia by EPF (read Malaysian government). Elsewhere in the Internet (at Malaysian Insider), the planes of Air Asia is 100% financed by RHB (an EPF unit). Along the way Sime Darby is able to get their booty by selling their land at PKFTZ price ... Wali Kota
ReplyDeleteWah
ReplyDeleteWhen it involves your friend Tony Fernandez, Sime Darby and Air Asia tu baik.
It is obviously a project that enriches the rich.
The benefit of the Labu LCCT would go to the highly connected and rich more than it would the rakyat.
The government should focus on investing on essentials (good water supply, excellent public services and health) than to keep injecting money and subsidise corporations including Air Asia or Sime Darby.
Why do we need another airport just 50km away from KLIA? Wasn't KLIA built to cater for passengers demand for up to another 20 years. Isn't this a waste of the nation's resources especially now when we are facing economic downturn?
ReplyDeleteIs this another harebrained scheme to spite Tun Dr Mahathir for building the KLIA so that it will become a white elephant?
I don't understand how the cabinet can approve such a wasteful project unless of course there are other considerations to allow some to make money?
Is this another effort to save Sime Darby and Air Asia? The IJN thing had already been aborted thus denying some people from making money.
What happens to the current LCCT built at a cost of more than RM100million?
Are we so flush with funds that we can just throw away millions nay billions so easily.
And why is this Air Asia riding so high like it can have its own way? One example is the Sabah/Sarawak service that it wanted so much. So as part of the revamp of the domestic service courtesy of the wise Tony Fernandez and the fourth floor boys it was given the Sabah/Sarawak route and even given some RM30million by the government for help.
What happened then. Just one year later, Air Asia gave up and Mas was forced to take over. What happened to the RM30 million?
The sad part of this some capable Mas employees who chose to stay in Sabah when Air Asia took over including some 10 captains of the Fokker suddenly found themselves out of jobs when the service was given back to Mas. Mas do not want to take them back into service because it said they were given VSS when they opt to stay put in Kota Kinabalu when Air Asia took over the service. Yet Mas is short of Fokker pilots especially capts and now resorting to employing expatriate pilots paying them nearly double what Mas would have paid the Malaysian pilots. (There is a worldwide shortage of Fokker pilots).
The last I heard 5 of the capts are now serving Kazakhstan air with the other five with other airlines overseas. Yet these pilots would rather serve our national airlines. When the rationalisation of the domestic routes were done and then undone nobody paid any attention to the employees and they still don't.
The last I heard Tony and the Kallimullah have gone to see Mas asking Mas to take over Air Asia with the threat that if Mas is not interested then Spore Airlines is interested - is there any truth in this?
Tony is also in deep shit because of the debacle over its speculation of aviation fuel and is looking around for some baleout?
mahmud babjee
I totally agree with below comment on Rocky bru’s
ReplyDeleteChengHo said…
Labu LCCT is for SIME and for AA
this project is an ego massage for Zubir ( musa hitam?) and Tony ( kali? )
8:41 AM.
Yes, people, Tony Badawi is in deep shit (remember Patrick’s badawi) especially now that Firefly has offered better alternatives (from Subang) to Penang, Singapore (soon) etc.
Fatso, being a rat can smell this and he is asking for the Labu sky, hoping that the idiot government can be conned in giving him Subang instead.
Before any public money is used to support Air Asia they must open their books. No open no support based on public funds.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely Labu LCCT is for Sime as they are the developer for that project. However, under the so-called JV project between Sime Darby and Air Asia, what is the stakeholding proportion in that scheme? While Sime Darby has all the financial muscle, how and where Air Asia raise its funds to be in the JV scheme? Hello Tony Fernandez, please clarify. Somebody did ask on the ownership of the land. My take is that the 3,000 acres are wholl-owned or maybe partly owned by Sime Darby. There is already a failed property project within the vicinity i.e. Planters' Haven. I guess this Labu LCCT project can absorb the losses in Planters' Haven. Do we actually need another airport when KLIA is fully operational and functional and existing LCCT is rather acceptable to the public? My take is that Sime Darby will exhaust its funds if EPF, TH or other fund-management GLCs are not involved in the funding scheme. If the palm oil price hits RM5,000 per tonne and the property price skyrocket without hitting the bubble ceiling then our money in EPF, ASN/ASB, TH etc will be safe. Looks like Pak Lah, KJ and gang are hell-bent to make money before March 2009!!!
ReplyDeleteMahmud,
ReplyDeletethe airports are not 50km apart.Much closer than that.
anyway having 2 airports close by is silly. No economic sense but then you don't expect our gomen to understand that. Everyone needs their own damn airport now.
pasquale,
airasia uses bangkok int airport cos consolidates all their operation there. most other LCCs use Don Mueang.
same way msian gomen should consolidate all their operations at KLIA.
Singapore's Changi has four terminals side by side connected by a free train, Skytrain. Terminals 1,2,3 and the Budget Terminal.
ReplyDeleteThis is connectivity, baby. You can get from one plane into another without leaving aircon comfort and within minutes!
The same with Suvarnabhumi in Bangkok, the other big rival that KLIA should want to beat.
With Airport Labulabi, KLIA will be fighting with a local rival. Stupid idea.
Tony should help KLIA - heck take it over if since he seems to think he knows everything, and maybe he does.
Let's not have some Airport LabuLabi separated by buses and taxis. Let's have seamless travel.
Imagine someone landing from Europe, Asia or America and want to go to Langkawi or Penang or Kuching.
They will have to take taxis, buses and a long train ride, rather than having a LCCT within the same KLIA complex or very close nearby, connected by a short train ride.
Also, aviation policy should be decided by the govt, i thought. Where is the Transport Minister?
Reme Ahmad, Singapore.
hallo Zubir @ Sime Darby,
ReplyDeleteWHY DON'T YOU INVEST IN THE PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN KL, JB AND PENANG CAUSE IT IS MORE IMPORTANT.
AFTER ALL, SIME DARBY IS ANOTHER GLC WHICH BELONG TO THE GOMEN.
SO THE MONEY INDIRECTLY STILL BELONG TO THE RAKYAT.
DO YOU READ THIS TONY....
To Uncle Tony,
ReplyDeleteI respect you for what have you done to Air-Asia. But for this project by having a LCCT just for Air-Asia is really damn stupid, even though sounds too ambitious but really is damn stupid. Of coz at this time, you can forecast and predict Air-Asia sustainability becoz right now Air-Asia is backup by the current gomen under Pak Dol. But wat if Air-Asia suddenly fail n melt down. This LCCT will be bailed out by the gomen n become the next white elephant. At the end rakyat (tax payer) money yang kene. We should learn to what that happening in US. They thought that having so much property asset such as LABU land can quarantee a high return. What happen if the company liquidity is based on how many cash they have not the asset their own.
I hope you wise up your business decision, and dont entertain too much with KJ and Pak Lah request. These family just know how to rip country wealth but hardly thinking abt country future. Mas will take over Air Asia at any time becoz Idris Jalal actually is a damn good CEO, even though most of the bloggers disagree but seriously when he take over and turn around MAS is really amazing.
Salam,
ReplyDeleteBro Rocky... saya cadangkan buat kempen cam kempen anti pengambil alihan IJN tempoh hari... dan saya pasti sokong...
Dear Tony,
ReplyDeleteI guess it's about time for you to rethink the so called strategy to have another LCCT built nearby KLIA.
Why you have a stubborn mind by not trying to negotiate and go along with the KLIA@MAB. Why don't you and MAS go side by side and promoting KLIA as a regional hub instead of bickering and fighting each other.
We as a citizen got fed up with this saga. Air Asia acting like they're belongs to a FOREIGN LAND or maybe Singapore I guess.
The way I look at AA now, they're milking KLIA for their own benefits. Please lah... Put your National Interest first since that you said you're Malaysian Tony!.
I dont see any rational when you've decided to have LABU LCCT. On paper you can tell every damn things mumbo jumbo. Have you consult with the DCA on this plan? I bet you they will oppose!!!
Bad side is, what about if those ideas failed? At the end, the Tax Payer money will be utilised to save U.
Dont be so stubborn, if you be good to MAS or MAB@GLC, I dont think you will SEE any RED! Unless you choose the other way round.Or maybe there's a secret agenda that smokescreen the plan.
God Speed..
Only if Tony put his OWN money or pledge his OWN Air Asia shares for the funding of this Labu project, then I will not doubt Tony's statement that "This project will not use public funds". Talk is cheap. We want substance not ular talk.
ReplyDeleteThe suspicion that Tony is part of agent in the "midnight regulation" period cannot be underestimate.
Tony can tell so nicely about the need for this project but so subtle of the finacing scheme reflect how much transparency and integrity:)
Why cant he say NOW that the funding of the project wil be from internally generated funds or commercial bank facilities.
Bro,
ReplyDeleteDesperate move by Air Asia..They start emailing customer: Part of the email as follow:
"In recent days, the proposed KLIA-East terminal has generated a lot of debates and discussions in the media – print, broadcast and online. We appreciate the fact that almost everyone who has voiced their view agrees that AirAsia needs a new terminal. For us, the staff of the airline, the new terminal is very much a matter of the company’s survival given the number of new aircraft joining our ranks – at least two are being delivered every month – and the growth in passengers, estimated to reach 60 million in 2013.
We would like to appeal for your support in helping us deliver on our promises to you and in making The Rakyat’s Terminal a reality. We have set up a designated web site where we will try and clear misconceptions regarding the project and provide answers to questions you may have regarding KLIA-East. Do drop by and have a look. We would also like to appeal to you to voice out your support for the project – and for lower fares, convenience and a comfortable environment – by writing to the print media, appearing on broadcast media, responding in the online media, especially blogs, and contacting your elected representatives."
I will try my best to be impartial on this matter.
ReplyDeleteFirst Let me put myself in Air Asia's shoes. Yes, no doubt that the existing LCCT is way overcrowded and I even believe most of what Tony said about Air Asia's mistreatment by MAHB. It is understandable that Air Asia wants this initiative to go ahead, even at MAHB and MAS expense!
Now onto the criticism. How on earth can any government approve a mega project like this in such hasty manner and with no public input whatsoever!?
What about safety concerns with 2 main airpots located in such close proximity? What about environmental impact?
Here's my thought. A possible solution is for MAHB to compromise its masterplan and accept the fact that the aviation industry has indeed changed (as Tony pointed out). Budget airline industry is finally booming in this region and is about time to perhaps allocate some of its original plan to cater for Air Asia. Everytime I look at the empty site allocated for Satelite B and I wonder why not let Air Asia use it?
Someone correctly pointed out that Air Asia actually uses the main terminal at Suvarnabumi. It can be done.
Eddie.
Rocky
ReplyDeleteJust weeks ago you posted something on Tony and he replied.
You published it.
There was also an indication that Tony would be interviewed and it will be featured in your blog?
What happended?
Another Tony Fernandez magic?
And you also said you should have bought shares in this airlines?
For once, if you feel so much for the public coffers and the way it should be spent, this is the time.
Start an aggressive campaign against this stupid 'LABU' move and let it gather momentum. Let the outcome/feedback be a basis for this matter to be debated in Parliament next month.
This would be a more noble initiative and national service than taking pot-shots at NST.
ANOTHER MALAYSIAN
It has been contended that the higher the cost of building a terminal, or for that matter, an airport, will result in higher charges to airlines operating into that particular airport. This is not the case. For example, when KLIA was built and the airlines moved from Subang, aeronautical charges at KLIA were not increased; similarly, the case for Langkawi, Kota Bharu, Alor Setar, Bintulu, Tawau and Limbang Airports. This will therefore also not be the case for newly upgraded airports in Kuala Terengganu, Melaka, Labuan, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu. Any increase is applied uniformly across all airports.
ReplyDeletemalaysiaairports.wordpress.com