Parking deal: royal patronage OK if company capable, says MB

Selangor menteri besar Amirudin Shari said there is nothing wrong with any royal member involved or becoming a patron of companies awarded concessions under state government initiatives. (File pic)

SUBANG JAYA: The involvement of royalty in a state government initiative is not inherently wrong, as long as the company can deliver results, says Selangor menteri besar Amirudin Shari.

Commenting on reports about a state parking concession being linked to a member of the Selangor royal family, he said the state executive council was not involved in selecting the company.

The selection process was delegated to Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated, which conducts a screening process “but it does not check who the ‘real owner’ is and so on”, he said. “If the company has the capacity, I don’t see anything wrong with royalty being involved, perhaps as a patron.”

Amirudin said what matters most is the company’s ability to contribute to better parking services rather than the background of its stakeholders. “If parking spaces and enforcement increase, I believe revenue for local authorities will also rise,” he added.

His comments came following a Malaysiakini report linking a member of Selangor royalty to Selmax Sdn Bhd, a company that was brought in shortly after Rantaian Mesra Sdn Bhd was announced as the original operator of the Selangor Intelligent Parking system on July 9.

A Bursa Malaysia filing on July 15 showed that Selmax had secured a long-term concession from several local councils, prompting questions over potential conflicts of interest and transparency.