KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 8): Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali has dared Ampang Jaya residents disgruntled by the controversial Sungai Besi-Ulu Klang Expressway (SUKE) to carry out their threat of legal action against the state government for allowing the highway’s development to continue.

“There is absolutely no issue,” he said when speaking to reporters at a worksite visit in Shah Alam earlier today, in response to the allegations by the Tak Nak SUKE Action Committee, which accused the Selangor of allowing development to take place despite the project’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report having expired.

“If they want to proceed with legal action, let them do so. We are ready to hear their grouses,” added the Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman.

On Wednesday, the Tak Nak SUKE Action Committee handed a memorandum to the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) and filed a formal complaint.

Spokesman Muhammad Agos Abul Hasan Ashari claimed that highway development continued without following proper legal procedures and land acquisition at affected areas in Ampang had started despite the EIA report having expired.

He said the committee would not hesitate in applying for a judicial review on SUKE and held the state government accountable for the breaches of procedures, as claimed by residents.

The SUKE is worth an estimated RM11.5 billion by the country’s second largest highway concessionaire under Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), Projek Lintasan Kota Sdn Bhd (Prolintas).

Prolintas is also involved in the development of another controversial project, Damansara-Shah Alam expressway (DASH) with an estimated cost of RM4.2 billion.