THE company set up by the state government to handle infrastructure projects was criticised, but it has brought many benefits to the rural areas of the state.

Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ) Sdn Bhd was set up in 1995 to resurface over 2,400km of dirt road in 1,500 villages.

It has completed tarring 1,776km with the services of 163 Class F contractors, Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman said.

"Without KPRJ, the villagers would probably have had to wait another 20 or 30 years for the roads to be resurfaced," he said.

With the setting-up of KPRJ, the state government had not only upgraded the roads, but has also built other amenities such as mosques and libraries.
KPRJ has expanded its scope of operations and now handles bigger projects, such as the construction of low-cost houses, the setting up of an electronic governance system and major road projects, such as the Senai-Desaru link, he said.

During yesterday's session, the House also unanimously approved the proposal to appoint former political secretary to the Menteri Besar Ahamat @ Ahamad Yusop as a senator in the Dewan Negara.

The 62-year-old had served as Ghani's political secretary from 2004.

His tenure ended on Monday.