Works Minister Samy Vellu's stand that there is no need to obtain public opinion on the proposed 2.1 billion-ringgit bridge-tunnel is appalling. His comments on the project - which would be the third link connecting Penang Island and the mainland - have laid bare the empty official rhetoric about being accountable and transparent to the people.

Responding to our earlier statement, Samy Vellu was reported in The Star as saying, ''This is not a privatised project. This is a government project and there is no need for public opinion.''

We fail to understand his twisted logic. If this project is really a government project, then there is all the more reason to consult the public. Samy Vellu may argue that the Government is going to borrow the money from overseas to undertake the project. He should then explain how the foreign loan is going to be repaid. Is the loan going to be repaid from his pocket? Surely, it will be out of government funds since it is, as he says, a "government project."

We would like to remind Samy Vellu and other Barisan Nasional politicians that government funds belong to the people - not to the Cabinet or the ruling coalition. So, as citizens and taxpayers, we have every right to be consulted, especially on major projects. And this is a major project - 2 billion ringgit of public money is at stake here.

Samy Vellu then went off on a tangent, talking about people having no alternative but to travel by air if there are no proper roads. For good measure, he talked of developing countries that had razed their forests and now wanted Malaysia to preserve its forests for the benefit of the world. We fail to see what forests have to do with the bridge-tunnel project.

First, Samy Vellu must categorically confirm that no private firms will be involved in this project - whether in the construction or as toll concessionaires - since this is supposed to be a "government project." Can he do this?

Next, Samy Vellu should tell the Malaysian public how much the toll rate will be. Or are we to believe that there will be no toll since this is a "government project"?

We don't understand why this project is being rammed down our throats when the most obvious, easiest, and economically feasible option - to vastly improve the ferry service - is totally ignored. The money needed to improve the ferry service - along with improved public transport to and from the ferry terminals - is peanuts compared with the 2-billion ringgit needed for a bridge-tunnel.

So why is this option ignored? Are we expected to believe that the decades-old ferry service, which collects 7 ringgit in toll, is not viable but a bridge tunnel, which costs a whopping 2 billion ringgit, is?