Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said yesterday that the supreme council of Malaysia's ruling party, Umno, backed the government's decision to relocate the Tanjong Pagar railway station to Woodlands by July 1 next year.
"My explanation was accepted by the supreme council and they are of the view that the solution is a win-win for both Malaysia and Singapore," Mr Najib was quoted as saying in a Reuters report.
Mr Najib and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the deal on the railway land on Monday, resolving an issue that has been outstanding for almost 20 years.
They said a company, M-S Pte Ltd, will be set up to take ownership of the vacated area, with 60 per cent of the equity held by Malaysian investment agency Khazanah Nasional Berhad and 40 per cent by Temasek Holdings.
Both sides will conduct valuations of the land and Mr Lee will visit Kuala Lumpur within a month with a proposal for a land swap.
The railway land could be swapped for real estate in two of Singapore's most expensive districts, including the site of the multibillion-dollar Marina Bay Sands casino complex, which opened last month.
Yesterday, former Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad said other contentious bilateral issues - such as the price of water sold to Singapore, the retirement funds issue and the construction of a new bridge linking the two countries - should also be addressed quickly by Mr Najib's administration.
Mr Najib said: "We look at these in stages. One meeting cannot solve everything." He added: "I believe with trust, a lot of issues can be addressed."
No comments:
Post a Comment