“Govt must provide persuasive arguments on Warisan Merdeka project” |
| Govt must provide persuasive arguments on Warisan Merdeka project Posted: 19 Oct 2010 02:24 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: The government has been urged to provide more persuasive arguments on the benefit of the Warisan Merdeka development, to win over the skeptics and avoid a political backlash, says former deputy director-general of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Datuk Dr Zainal Aznam Yusof. "We are unsure as to exactly how much it would eventually cost. All we know is, the idea and possible range of cost, is in the billions of ringgit," he told Bernama in an interview on Tuesday, Oct 19. He also said there are questions regarding the economic viability and impact as well as overall benefit of this project. The Warisan Merdeka project, located within the enclave of Stadium Merdeka and Stadium Negara here, was announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak during the tabling of the Budget 2011 last Friday. The proposed integrated development comprising a 100-storey tower, is expected to be completed by 2020. According to the Prime Minister, Warisan Merdeka is another landmark to be developed by Permodalan Nasional Bhd at a total cost of RM5 billion,with the tower expected to be completed by 2015. "Will it provide returns or is it just purely an iconic project?," he asked, noting that, Malaysia already has the Petronas Twin Towers, which at one stage was the tallest building in the world. Zainal said the common man on the street wants to know if the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka, which will be the tallest in the country, is money well spent. On other budget proposals, Zainal — who is also advisor to the National Economic Advisory Council (NEAC) — welcomed the incentives to encourage first time house buyers, especially those among the lower income group. He is also expecting much more aggressive government intervention in the property market to curb speculation, but noted, it was not addressed in the budget. "A lot of people are now concerned about the asset bubble in the residential market, particularly in urban areas like Kuala Lumpur, the Klang Valley and other urban areas. "It could be putting houses out of the reach of many people," he highlighted. Zainal said speculators rather than real investors now mostly generating the demand. "The speculators just want to make money out of the genuine effort of people to own houses and the budget has provided nothing to curb it," he added. On the proposed private pension fund, Zainal said the idea is good but there is a need for further details and may take time to materialise. If there is little government involvement it may spin off into something Malaysians will be unhappy with as in other countries, he said, adding the good thing is, it is going to be tax deductible. Overall, Zainal said the Budget 2011 should be seen as part of efforts by the government to transform the country's economy for the medium term up to 2015 and over the long term to 2020. He said the budget also fits in nicely with the 10th Malaysia Plan and the New Economic Model. "The RM212 billion Budget 2011 is fairly kind and modest as the government is trying to contain the fiscal deficit," he added. — Bernama This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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