Mat Hasan lauds Guan Eng's teaser for ECRL reroute to N9
The former state menteri besar said "this makes a lot of sense" and would be good for Negeri Sembilan...
RANTAU POLLS | Umno acting president Mohamad Hasan has lauded a teased reroute of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) to Negeri Sembilan.
The former state menteri besar said "this makes a lot of sense" and would be good for Negeri Sembilan.
"Anything good for the country, for the people, why not, I will support," Mohamad said at a press conference in Rantau today.
Last night Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng teased that the ECRL might be rerouted, and that it would be "good news" for Negeri Sembilan,
Lim said this hinged on whether former finance minister Daim Zainuddin can strike a deal with the China contractors to lower ECRL’s cost to around RM35 billion.
Mohamed said this makes sense, as a large portion of a project’s cost comes from land acquisition.
Thus, he said cost can be lowered by buying land in Seremban, for example, instead of in the Klang Valley.
He said land in Seremban cost about RM40 per square foot, compared to around RM700 per square foot in Kuala Lumpur.
“So, if they want to reroute it from Pahang going into Negeri Sembilan and up to Port Klang again, that makes a lot of sense.
“That's why you can reduce the amount,” Mohamad said.
However, he said the government must ensure that the project benefits the people of Negari Sembilan by setting up a station in the state.
But when asked earlier if Lim's hints of a reroute were a campaign offence, Mohamad said it might be, and urged the Election Commission to look into it.
Meanwhile, Mohamad also lauded Putrajaya's move to pull out from being a signatory of the Rome Statute.
He said this showed that the government listened to the people, who were uneasy that the Rome Statute would undermine national sovereignty.
On another matter, Mohamad voiced his disappointment with Tabung Haji's 1.25 percent hibah (dividend) payout this year.
He said this was due to the Tabung Haji's stock portfolio crashing, which he blamed on the Pakatan Harapan government for not restoring market confidence since they took power.
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