Federal govt did the heavy lifting on JS-SEZ, says Tengku Zafrul

PETALING JAYA: Mida chairman Tengku Zafrul Aziz advised critics against turning the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) into a political “drama”, saying the federal government has been doing the work behind the initiative.

In a video posted on social media, the senior political adviser to the prime minister said the JS-SEZ was a federal government initiative.

He said it was the federal government that secured Singapore’s agreement to move forward together, creating the initiative, and attracting investments through Mida and related agencies.

“The state (Johor) does have a role, and we respect its contribution, but do not erase the federal government’s main role simply because of an election,” he said.

Tengku Zafrul said almost RM77 billion in investments have been approved, with 57% already entering the implementation stage.

“So, if you want to know whether the JS-SEZ is slow or not, don’t look at the drama. Look at the results,” he said.

“We are focused on getting the work done. We do not want to entertain drama.”

His remarks came after Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi accused the federal government of repeatedly delaying the launch of the JS-SEZ master plan.

Onn Hafiz, who is also the Johor Barisan Nasional chairman, claimed that the master plan is a Malaysian government document and does not require Singapore’s approval to be launched.

He said the blueprint had gone through the necessary consultation process with the Singapore government, and all that remained was for Putrajaya to launch it.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim criticised Onn Hafiz for using the JS-SEZ as campaign material for the Johor state election on July 11, describing the move as “not intelligent”.