THE Negeri Sembilan state government has come up with a plan, spanning the next 25 years, to give its economy a shot in the arm. As a precursor to this, the state government launched in mid-December last year Invest NS Year 2021, but it gained little traction because of the pandemic.
Datuk Mohamad Rafie Ab Malek, chairman of NS Corporation, the government agency responsible for the investment and economic affairs of Negeri Sembilan, sheds some light on the state’s ambitious plans.
“We will finalise things soon. This is our economic blueprint. [The] Negeri Sembilan state government has prepared its own master plan for the entire development until 2045. The gross development, the targeted value that we plan for the whole thing, is about RM468 billion,” Mohamad Rafie tells The Edge in an exclusive interview.
THE termination of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project is a setback for the property developments that had hoped to tap the potential of the mega transport endeavour.
While there has been talk of having a domestic HSR from KL to Johor Baru, there is no certainty as to whether it will materialise in the near term. Thus, the gestation period for Bandar Malaysia the HSR terminus in KL and Vision Valley 2.0 projects could take longer than planned.
However, a corporate observer familiar with the Bandar Malaysia development is unfazed by the possible delay as a result of the termination. “This project is not going to happen in five years. So, what is the difference if it is extended by another five years? After all it is a 20- to 30-year project,” she tells The Edge.
Economics graduate Chong Yoong Fu returned to the family business in 2011 after a stint in the corporate world because the family had land and expertise that he could bank on, and he had a deep passion for property development.
Last year, the executive director of Winfar Group, which he founded in 2012, launched his first residential development, Serlesa Villas, in Serdang Heights.
At his family business Tulin Development Sdn Bhd, he had been involved in two commercial projects, Tulin 28, which was completed in October 2012, and Seri Gembira Avenue, which was handed over to purchasers in August 2014.
“These two projects were developed on land my grandparents owned in partnership with a relative, who has been in the construction line for over 30 years,” says Chong. “He was my mentor when I joined the property business at the end of 2011 after I left MMC Corp Bhd. While at MMC Corp, I had been partially involved in the two projects, keeping tabs on their progress.”
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