THE on-again, off-again Multi-Lane Fast Flow (MLFF) negotiations between the government, concessionaires and a wannabe concessionaire tell us that we are not living in the best of all possible worlds.
Decisions and indecisions of the 1980s and thereafter on how to manage our highways have led us here.
For sure, we can't change those decisions and indecisions, but we can certainly learn from them.
One lesson is this: notwithstanding what thorough-bred capitalists say, not all privatisation of government functions serve public interest. But then again, the 1980s was a decade of global privatisation, a world on a dizzy Thatcherite journey.
Malaysia, too, got caught up in the frenzy. No blame on the leaders of the time. Perhaps they thought it was the best for the country then. Besides, how to know what would happen 44 years down the road?
To that question, we add this: why are most of the 33 concessionaires saying no to the government's proposal? There are several reasons, some of which have become public knowledge.
First is, why, they ask, is a company with no experience as a highway concessionaire being asked to implement the MLFF?
Good question, no doubt. More on this later. Who is this new comer? A joint venture between Konsortium Jaringan Selangor Sdn Bhd (KJS), a subsidiary of YTL Group, and SEP Synergy (M) Sdn Bhd (SEP), a Bumiputera company.
What is on offer by KJS-SEP? According to media reports, KJS SEP is proposing a barrier-less toll collection system that is said to cost RM650 million per year, much less than that currently being incurred by the concessionaires.
Here is where the controversy sets in, at least to the concessionaires. The MLFF is to be operated by what is called a Central Tolling Company (CTC), which will design, finance, operate and maintain the system in return for a con cession.
If media reports are right, a 30-year one at that. One more concession headache for the government? The concessionaire s' second reason to say nay to the proposal is because the CTC is really KJS-SEP.
After being in charge of their toll collection for all these years, now they worry, among other things, how much leakage they would have to put up with when motorists beat the system.
Now for the good question posed by the concessionaires. Without appearing to answer the question on behalf of the government, we offer a partial response. The MLFF isn't a one-or-two-year-old story.
As we understand the barrier-free toll tale, the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) had, over the last decade or so, left it to the concessionaires to implement it. Citing costs and other issues, they parked the idea on the shelf.
Now the concessionaires ask, why a newcomer and not us? They know the answer. LLM, too, must shoulder some blame for having let the concessionaires keep the MLFF in abeyance for this long.
Having hit a roadblock, Putrajaya is going for a cabinet decision in January. For sure, the MLFF is a mess, but transport expert Rosli Khan has a way out for Putrajaya.
Ask the 33 concessionaires to come up with an MLFF system that is owned, operated and maintained jointly, but with three "nos": no increase in toll rates, no extension of concession agreements and no government funding.
A good idea whose time may have come.