Najib’s ECRL view illogical, says Wong Chen

Economist Hoo Ke Ping, however, believes the ECRL can boost not just the agricultural and fishing industries, but the heavy industries as well.

PETALING JAYA: PKR’s Wong Chen has rubbished the idea that the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) will give farmers and fishermen better market access.

Calling such notions illogical, the Kelana Jaya MP said the vast majority of farmers and fishermen were small operators.

“Therefore, most farmers and fishermen will not take the ECRL train to sell their produce to bypass middlemen.

“If anything, the ECRL will in fact empower and benefit the middlemen more,” he told FMT.

Wong was asked to comment on Prime Minister Najib Razak’s recent remark that the efficient transport system would benefit farmers and fishermen and could eliminate the need for middlemen.

Najib added that this was something the opposition had never mentioned.

To this, Wong said the opposition had good reason not to mention Najib’s view as the entire argument was flawed and preposterous.

However, economist Hoo Ke Ping offered a different view. Hoo said the ECRL would boost not only the agricultural and fishing industries along the east coast, but also the heavy industries such as steel, serving as a good transport system for them.

“When we talk about the railway from Klang to Kelantan, what immediately comes to mind is the heavy industries.

“For the heavy industries such as steel, the ECRL would be a very useful and good transportation system,” he said.

According to Hoo, the agricultural and fishing industries on the east coast had long been neglected, partly due to poor transportation.

When it came to transporting agricultural and fishery products, he said, a powered train would move the produce quickly to Klang and Singapore.

“What is needed now is for the government to build up the infrastructure, such as more refrigerated facilities for the fisheries along the coast.

“There is a need for proper handling ports and frozen facilities storage.”

Hoo said the ECRL could prove to be a game changer for the economic development of the east coast, adding that for too long, the focus had been on developing the west coast.

“This could pave the way for more regional development on the east coast, but how fast or slow the fisheries and agricultural sector grow depends on the policies in place,” he said. -FMT