Pheu Thai questions 'rushed' contract

The ruling Pheu Thai Party will today ask the Department of Special Investigation to investigate the Bt190-billion, 30-year contract that the city recently “rushed” to give to a company to continue operating the Skytrain system.
“We believe the contract for the Bangkok Mass Transit System is illegitimate,” Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit said yesterday.
“We believe it violates the Public-Private Joint Venture Act and the laws governing the bidding for government projects,” he said.
Legal action would be pursued against the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and its executives including Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra, he said.
Yuttapong Jarassathien, deputy Pheu Thai spokesman, said the questionable deal was awarded by Krungthep Thanakom Co (KT), the BMA’s wholly owned investment arm.
“Via this contract, KT will get Bt60 million each year for the next three decades. In all, KT will reap Bt1.8 billion and it is very interesting to see that the KT chairman is Assoc Professor Prapanpong Vejjajiva, a relative of Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva,” Yuttapong said.
Sukhumbhand is a member of the Democrat Party.
BTS developed the original Skytrain system and was awarded a 30-year concession for it 13 years ago. The original network, comprising the Silom and Sukhumvit lines, covers 23.5 kilometres of track and 23 stations built atop a single-column support structure.
However, the BMA developed the two Skytrain line extensions itself but recently decided to grant the 30-year operating and maintenance contract to BTS for all Skytrain routes.
“Why didn’t the BMA call for a bidding?” Yuttapong asked.
The BMA seemed to be in a hurry to conclude the operating/maintenance service deal for the original Skytrain network even though BMA could wait and negotiate a deal with BTS around the time the 30-year concession expires, he said.
The BMA also had pushed for the passage of as many as six laws to facilitate the conferring of the contract to BTS via KT, he said.
Deputy PM Yongyuth Wichaidit, who is also interior minister, said he had already asked the BMA about the suspected irregularities. Although the BMA is a special administrative organisation, it is under the supervision of the Interior Ministry.
The central government has also partially paid for the construction of the Skytrain route extensions, he said.
BTS chairman Surapong Laoha-Unya sought to dismiss criticism that the price paid by BMA for 30 years of operating and maintenance services was too high.
“It’s lower than the reference price calculated by many neutral agencies,” he said.
Skytrain passengers would benefit from this lower priced contract because in the long run they would pay a lower fare, while the contract’s long term made it easier to plan the procurement of carriages, he said.
“It takes three years to get the trains,” he said.
BTS has now placed orders for five more four-car trains and will start adding a car to its 35 three-car trains late this year.