RM8 BILLION MORE OF WHITE ELEPHANTS IN JOHOR? KHALED PROMISES 3 MAJOR THEME PARKS BUT WHO HAS SO MUCH MONEY TO INVEST – SURELY, NOT CHINA AGAIN?

JOHOR BARU: Johor will have three major entertainment parks worth almost RM8bil in the near future, said Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

“We want to be the new economic power house in the region and make Johor a competitor to all including our close neighbour, Singapore,” said Mohamed Khaled.

He said that the state was known as the Southern Tiger and that it is now the time for the tiger to show its teeth and stripes.

“We do not want to be a backyard to Singapore, we must catch up to the lion,” he added.

He pointed out that under its manifesto, dubbed Johor Hi-5, there were five key points with more than 230 offers to Johoreans.

“For us to catch the lion, we must upgrade our tourism sector with new attractions because if Singapore has Gardens by the Bay, we will build a new tourism centre at the Desaru coast worth RM4.5bil,” he said.

“In Singapore, they have Universal Studios but here, we will build the world’s first science fiction theme park near Legoland here,” he added.

Mohamed Khaled also pointed out that Barisan is also committed to building a RM2.7bil eco entertainment park near the Yayasan Pelajaran Johor campus in Kota Tinggi.

“Once all the projects are completed, I would not be surprised to see Singaporeans coming to world class facilities available here,” he said.

In Ayer Hitam, Umno banks on China to soothe worried farmers

AYER HITAM ― Umno sought to assure farmers in Ayer Hitam, touted as a bellwether constituency in the upcoming election, that Barisan Nasional (BN) was looking at China as a new emerging market for palm oil and rubber.

Following the European Union’s (EU) decision to ban the use of palm oil in biofuels from 2021, Ayer Hitam Umno division chief Datuk Samsol Bari Jamali said it was pertinent that Malaysia maintained a good cooperation with China, currently the second biggest importer of palm oil.

“This is due to the nature of the people in central Johor, especially in Ayer Hitam, which depends on palm oil, rubber plantation, and farming for income.

“Although most farmers are independent and will find means to ensure they will get the most value out of their lands, yet they are worried that their livelihood would be in jeopardy due to the ban. Hence why BN has been pushing for greater cooperation with China to market our product into their market,” Samsol told Malay Mail in an interview here.

The DAP has described the Ayer Hitam parliament seat in Johor as a bellwether of the 14th general election, sending its rising star Liew Chin Tong there to take on MCA deputy president and three-term Ayer Hitam MP Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong.

Samsol said the Opposition’s constant rhetoric that the government was selling parts of the country to China was baseless and could potentially jeopardise the bilateral relationship, consequently affecting farmers’ livelihood.

“I implore for the Opposition to produce such evidence of these transactions if any. If they continue to push such agenda, the blowback effect would be dire for our farming community,” he said.

According to Samsol, farmers make up a significant percentage of the electorate in Ayer Hitam, but was unsure of the exact figures.

The Ayer Hitam Umno division chief added that Johor retained the highest Malay reserve land in the peninsula, about 30 per cent of the total land reserve bank.

With the looming general election, Samsol said he was not worried about Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) new Malay party, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), and the influence of PPBM president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in Johor.

“Of 96 Umno branches in Ayer Hitam, none of them collapsed to join Tan Sri Muhyiddin. Umno Johor is confident with BN’s current leadership and will continue to do. Even the local community here regardless of race are well informed of BN and Datuk [Seri] Wee Ka Siong’s performance,” he said.

“The people here live a simple life without many demands. Ayer Hitam only became famous because DAP’s intention to go head to head with MCA.

“Regardless, I welcome any opposition candidate to contest here. I’m confident the people will view us here objectively on our record compared to relying on sentiments,” Samsol added.

ANN / MALAY MAIL