The Perak government will revisit its proposed plan to build a town at the Perak-Thailand border (Pengkalan Hulu-Betong), to potentially draw tourists to the state.

Perak Menteri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir said the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority and Economic Planning Unit had been entrusted to find a resolution to the impediments before submitting a new proposal.

“Part of the plan in the Malaysia-Indonesia-Thailand understanding was to  develop our borders at the same time.

“But the idea in the context of Pengkalan Hulu could not be implemented due to certain snags involving land; but the state government is looking again at the potential for growth of the area,” he told the state assembly today.

Zambry was responding to a supplementary question from Aznel Ibrahim (BN-Pengkalan Hulu) on the state government’s plans for the constituency.

Meanwhile, Rural Development, Plantation, Agriculture, Information and Human Capital Development Committee chairperson Saarani Mohamad said in 2014, the state government allocated RM80,000 to build a fishermen’s jetty at Kampung Tebok, Kuala Sepetang.

He said RM120,000 was also set aside for another jetty at Pengkalan Nelayan Kampung Sungai Kerang, Sungai Tinggi.

“For 2015, RM41,000 was allocated to upgrade the agro-based industry entrepreneurs’ premises at Kampung Permatang Raja, Sungai Tinggi,” he said, in reply to Chua Yee Ling (DAP-Kuala Sepetang).

Industries, Investment and Corridor Development Committee chairperson Mohamad Zahir Abdul Khalid meanwhile, said about 20,000 employment opportunities were created from foreign direct investments in Perak in the nine years from 2006 till 2014.

He said the jobs were mostly taken up by locals.

“The vacancies were filled by locals particularly in the management, professional and technical level. Only 10 percent, in electronics, were filled by foreign workers,” he said.

- Bernama