Political instability reason why Johor is a "step-child", sidelined - MB

ISKANDAR PUTERI - The country's political instability for the past four years is said to be the cause for Johor being ignored by the Federal government.

This was voiced by its Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi during the winding up session of the first 15th Johor State Assembly seating in Kota Iskandar, here on Sunday.

He said the matter can be seen today when only 79 new projects were brought in with an allocation of less than RM100 million.

"The allocation received by the state of Johor for the second 'rolling plan' this year is RM4.6 billion involving 434 projects.

"Although the allocation has increased, most of it is for extension projects, while for new projects it only involves 79 projects with an allocation of only RM85.5 million or only two percent of the total allocation for 2022," he said.

On June 16, the Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, when officiating the opening of the Second Meeting for the First Term of the state assembly seating described the state as being neglected by the Federal government despite being a major contributor to the country's economy.

He said Johor had contributed more than RM13 billion annually and had been the country's largest investment contributor from 2013 to 2018.

Meanwhile, Onn Hafiz, who is also the Machap State Assemblyman, said the state and country became unstable after the 14th General Election (GE14) which saw the federal government governed by Pakatan Harapan (PH).

He said the answer to resolve issues regarding federalism was not through the “all state committee” but with stability that would only exist if there was a stable government.

"Therefore, I appeal to the people of Johor not to take any more risks. In the next GE, restore the country's stability by choosing a government that can bring stability.

"Let us not allow ourselves to fall into the same trap and dark hole, and then be bitten by the same snake a second time," he said.