Former MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek has credited incumbent Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi with the successes achieved under the Maju Johor 2030 agenda.
Chua, who retired from active politics after the 13th general election in 2013, said Onn Hafiz’s agenda had given Johor a clear development target, backed by trade missions that identified over RM100 billion in foreign investment.
“In order to achieve (the target set), he has undertaken trade missions - and some of the staff told me that our menteri besar is also a good salesperson,” said the former health minister in an interview with online portal FMT.
Investments from Singapore reportedly accounted for over half of foreign investment in Johor last year, at RM58.3 billion out of RM110 billion.
“Today, if you go to Johor, especially Johor Bahru and the surrounding areas, you can see that it’s booming. It is no less booming than Kuala Lumpur,” Chua said, ahead of the upcoming Johor election.
Among other factors, the investment figure was attributed to developments within the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone, which also promised 100,000 jobs in high-value sectors with a starting pay of RM4,000 - more than double the national minimum wage.
Chua said Onn Hafiz also recognised that daily connectivity is important for investor confidence, especially given Johor’s proximity to Singapore.
He pointed to Onn Hafiz’s unannounced visits to the Causeway and Second Link bridges as an example of the menteri besar’s hands-on approach to problem-solving.
“He’s going to the Second Link and Causeway early in the morning, unannounced, looking at how to solve the congestion, impressing a lot of people.
“This is a menteri besar who means business,” said Chua, who first entered electoral politics as the Penggaram assemblyperson in Johor in 1986, holding the seat for four terms until 2004.
“The economic growth of Johor has been very impressive for the last four years, higher than the national (average). And in 2021-2024, Johor registered 6.4 percent growth,” he said, citing a figure higher than Malaysia’s 5.2 percent rate last year.
Johor’s growth figure translated into RM2.67 billion in revenue collection last year, the highest in the state’s history, surpassing an initial projection of RM2.005 billion.
People’s welfare
In the interview with FMT, the veteran politician raised a bigger question about whether the state’s surplus had benefited ordinary people.
“That’s why we have Bantuan Kasih Johor, with so much money to give to the poor, people with disabilities, petty traders.
“This is a welfare fund. If I give you the figure, you will be surprised. RM650 million. Every year, an average of RM160 million, and this cuts across all races,” he noted.
Chua did not defend his Labis parliamentary seat after only one term following a sex scandal that arose during the 12th general election year in 2008.
However, BN, via MCA, defended the Labis seat through Chua’s son, Chua Tee Yong, until the “political tsunami” of 2018 swept through the party’s strongholds and left the party with a single seat in Ayer Hitam.
At the state level, MCA retained Yong Peng and Pekan Nanas in 2018, and in the 2022 state election, it recaptured two other seats: Paloh and Bekok.
Apart from Soi Lek, Johor is also the home state of MCA’s past president, the late Ling Liong Sik, and current president Wee Ka Siong.
Ahead of the 16th Johor state election, BN had parted ways with Harapan as its federal-level ally to contest all 56 seats, and Wee said yesterday that discussions are underway on the final seat distribution among BN component parties. - Mkini
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