Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said he would make no apologies for trying to facilitate investment in Malaysia and stressed that he would not engage in deals which compromise the nation's sovereignty.

He said such investments are in the interest of both the people of Malaysia as well as the country's partners abroad.

“To turn away these investments out of a narrow and foolish belief - and a fundamental misunderstanding of economics - would only be bad for the country […]

“To those critics who say 'too much, too fast, too soon', I say to you this: if you want to delay Malaysia’s development, if you want Malaysia to fall behind, and if you don't want jobs to be created or levels of income to rise, then you go and campaign on that platform.

“I will never apologise for facilitating investment in Malaysia. These ventures are in the interest of all, for the rakyat here in Malaysia, and for our partners from abroad,” he said at the opening ceremony of the China Construction Bank (Malaysia) Bhd in Kuala Lumpur today.

The branch will serve as China Construction Bank’s regional hub for its operations in the Asean market, including Malaysia.

Najib said Malaysia is one of China’s top trading partners, and quoted China president Xi Jinping saying that relations between the two countries are now at its best ever.

Among others, he said memorandums of understanding had been signed to export Malaysian pineapples and palm oil to China, with more deals to export Malaysian products to China still in the pipeline.

He added that a Chinese firm had also signed a joint venture to set up a RM2 billion factory in Sarawak, while Sabah would benefit from a cooperation agreement to develop a luxury commercial hub in Kota Kinabalu.

“These are real and transformative results of the excellent relations that Malaysia and China have built. These relations do not compromise sovereignty one bit, contrary to what opposition politicians have said. I will never sell Malaysia’s sovereignty,” he stressed.

“But Malaysia has long been a country open and friendly to all.

“The fact that we are a preferred destination for foreign direct investment is a testament to the confidence other countries have in us, whether that be Japan or China, India and Saudi Arabia, or even the Western countries,” he added.