KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 24 — Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib today denied the firm that caused mountains of garbage to be dumped along a major highway here was awarded the contract due to links to Umno, insisting the contract for the Taman Beringin transfer station was won by open tender.

He also defended Umpan Jaya Sdn Bhd as a reputable firm that has fallen on hard times since the passing of its owner, Datuk Mohd Noordin Mohd Kassim who had been Batu Kawan Umno division chief.

“I am aware that it is important for us to appoint contractors that are competent and I understand that the contractor was competent in Penang, as Seberang Prai City Hall had appointed Umpan Jaya as the contractor to manage waste.

“The government made the decision to award the contract to a competent company but because of management issues and the death of the late Datuk Noordin Kassim, his children’s inexperience may have been the problem,” he told reporters at the DBKL headquarters here after presenting the city hall’s budget for 2014.

Earlier today, Serdang MP Ong Kian Ming questioned DBKL for awarding the management of the transfer station to a company he claimed had little experience in running such an operation, after the station’s closure forced thousands of tonnes of garbage to be dumped along the Middle Ring Road 2 (MR2R2) here last week.

He also demanded the minister of urban well-being, housing and local government be upfront about the reason Umpan Jaya was chosen, and the cost of the contract awarded. Umpan Jaya’s contract expires in March next year.

The mayor previously said the compactors are being fixed and hopes the transfer station will be reopened by December 31, after which, it will temporarily run by Alam Flora until a tender is called for a new contractor.

Ong Kian Ming questioned DBKL for awarding the management of the transfer station to a company he claimed had little experience in running such an operation. – Picture by Choo Choy May

In the meantime, the city’s solid waste is being rerouted to the Bukit Tagar landfill near Rawang for disposal.

Today, the mayor conceded that the company’s performance was already under scrutiny since June last year.

“I started discussing with them since last year on ways to improve but the problem is with the management,” he said.

When asked today what action will be taken against Umpan Jaya for its failure to manage the transfer station, a cautious Ahmad Phesal said that DBKL needed to determine what options were available within the contract.

While he said the company has also since conceded that it was unable to fulfil its part of contract, Ahmad Phesal said the firm could not do so without repercussions.

“In the end the company said they no longer able to do their job, but even then, they can’t just get away from the obligations in the contract, but they have given up the project,” he said.

Phesal also said that DBKL has allotted RM63 million next year for the Taman Beringin transfer station and the Bukit Tagar Sanitary Landfills, adding that DBKL manages between 2,500 and 2,600 tonnes of domestic and bulk waste every day, which equates to about 949,000 metric tonne yearly.