Forest City only 0.01pct of Johor, so why Dr M so fixated, MB asks

Johor Menteri Besar Khaled Nordin is puzzled by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad's fixation on the Forest City project in the state.

Khaled said Forest City is only 0.01 percent of the state, and that the Bersatu chairperson should focus on bigger matters concerning Johor.

"(Mahathir) should act like the Johor state government. At least on matters of Islam, our agenda is certain.

"We want to strengthen Muslims, who are 60 percent of Johor... (but instead) he fixates on the 0.01 percent. So don't be influenced by (Mahathir)," Khaled was quoted as saying by Sinar Harian.

He was responding to Mahathir's latest attack on Forest City, at the Bersatu annual general meeting on Saturday.

According to Free Malaysia Today, Mahathir had said that he hoped the project located in Iskandar would be inhabited by monkeys and baboons.

“I hope Forest City will truly become a forest… Its residents will consist of baboons, monkeys and so on,” he was reported as saying.

Mahathir's criticism of the RM100 billion Forest City project stems from it being developed by a company from China, a move which he claimed was undermining Malaysia's sovereignty.

Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has denied that Johor land was being pawned off to China or other countries. 

Meanwhile, Khaled said that Mahathir simply does not understand Johor's need to develop land, as it neither has natural resources nor benefits from federal development projects like Selangor does.

"We don't have oil or gas, we no longer encourage logging.  We have zero resources. So we develop (land) that is small for us to stimulate economic growth in Johor.

"If not, Johor's economy would not grow, and we can't bring development to the people. We can't build more religious schools.

"Johor has to think about developing itself. So Mahathir focusing on Forest City doesn't help. He doesn't understand Johor, he only knows the Klang Valley." -Mkini