This followed a statement by project owner Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd (MRL) yesterday that so far, only the Selangor government had not granted land approval for the implementation of the mega project.
Budiman said other states involved in the project, namely Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang, had given their land approval to MRL, enabling ECRL construction works to commence in November.
“I’m not sure what the Selangor government’s excuse is for not granting approval to MRL to implement the ECRL stretch in the state, which involves an 80km stretch from Gombak to Port Klang.
“The state government should give this priority and expedite the land approval for this project which is of national interest, instead of delaying and trying to make this a political issue,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Budiman, who is also Sungai Panjang assemblyman, urged the state government under the leadership of Menteri Besar Mohamed Azmin Ali not to be narrow-minded, saying he had failed to see the huge benefits to be gained from the construction of the RM55 billion, 688km railway line.
He said the ECRL, inspired by Prime Minister Najib Razak, was aimed not only at providing national infrastructure facilities and upgrading public transport in rural areas, but would act as a catalyst in bridging the economic gap between the east and west coast regions.
Yesterday, MRL construction head Noor Azlan Salleh reportedly said the Selangor government had yet to grant approval to the company to implement the ECRL project in the state, although the application had been submitted much earlier.
The delay in the land approval may have major implications for the implementation of the project, which will link Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang with Port Klang and is expected to be completed by 2024.