KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will continue to be an investor-friendly country, regardless of what opposition leaders have to say, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.
In his speech during the Bukit Bintang City Centre (BBCC) groundbreaking ceremony, Najib called on investors – both local and foreign – to ignore his detractors' criticisms regarding foreign direct investments (FDIs).
"It is evident that our government and the whole nation welcomes FDIs... whether you are from Japan, China, Saudi Arabia, the US or Singapore – if you add value to our economy, provide more jobs, bring in new technologies and add to our export values, you are welcome to invest in Malaysia.
"Disregard what the opposition has to say about FDIs. What they have said are baseless and there were also racist (undertones).
"That is why, as far as this government is concerned, we will continue to be an investor-friendly government," he said.
Previously, former premier and Najib's chief critic, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, said that the prime minister's move to attract FDIs by selling Malaysian land is akin to selling Singapore to Great Britain during the colonial era.
According to Najib, construction of the BBCC will lead to an integrated rail transport network of the KTM, LRT and MRT, as well as the city centre Monorail, which will be transporting commuters efficiently around the city, Greater KL, the Klang Valley and beyond.
"From early on, this government has taken very seriously the challenges of our public transport system, which has been neglected by one of my predecessors, and I have directed my administration to pay particular attention to the rail services," he said.
Although Najib did not mention who he was referring to, it is believed he was alluding to Tun Mahathir.
This is not the first time Najib had taken a potshot at Tun Mahathir for allegedly neglecting the city’s public transportation system. In October last year, the Prime Minister said that the longest-serving prime minister never paid attention to public transport as he was more focused on cars, "especially Proton cars".