See what political stability’s brought us: Anwar unveils investment pledges

KEPALA BATAS – Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim tonight showed evidence of what political stability can bring when he unveiled various pledges by investors that were made on the condition that he can assure them the national unity government is here to stay.

“I told them that we will be around for at least five years,” the prime minister said.

Investors and fund managers cherish political stability, something the national unity government aspires to deliver to both the people and investors, he said.

Anwar, who is also finance minister, said that key investors have pledged billions of ringgit to the country, generating spillover effects and most importantly jobs.

For Kedah, despite the almost daily condemnation from a hostile caretaker menteri besar in Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor, Anwar said that he secured almost RM10 billion from global semiconductor manufacturer Infineon Technologies AG with the expansion of its plant at Kulim Hi-Tech Park.

Infineon will construct the world's largest power fabrication plant as part of its expansion plans in Malaysia.

Anwar has also secured a commitment from Elon Musk to build electric cars at a Tesla research and development facility in Putrajaya.

It will be Tesla’s largest facility in the region, Anwar declared, saying the foreign direct investments are worth about RM200 million.

China carmaker Geely has pledged RM10 billion to expand the automotive city it has with national car manufacturer Proton in Tanjung Malim, Anwar said.

Saudi Arabia's Aramco, one of the largest petrochemical multinationals in the world, has now agreed to make Malaysia the hub of its regional presence in Asean.

All of this is possible because investors are convinced that Malaysia has stability, Anwar said.

He said that to meet foreign investors’ expectations, he has welcomed the upskilling of Malaysian workers to ensure they can become top-skilled workers in the near future.

“This will create more job opportunities,” said Anwar.

He said that he wants to use the Penang Skills Development Corporation as a model for re-educating the workforce in technical vocational educational training.

Job creation will lead to the birth of a new breed of entrepreneurs who can bring more value and higher salaries to their workers, said Anwar.

He said this can only be realised if the government has a civil service committed to eradicating all forms of corruption in the country.

“I do not want to be a leader of a nation riddled with corruption and abuses. I will not stand for it, and I will fight the corruptors, even the billionaires who may be banding together in a devious attempt to unseat me. I am ready to face them,” said Anwar.

 Anwar said that he is determined to provide investors a country generally free of corruption and that is geared more highly to become a responsible global player.

He said this after meeting a gathering of Bumiputera entrepreneurs at Bertam Resort.

The gathering was organised by the state’s Bumiputera development council under Tan Sri Khalid Ramli, the former implementation coordination unity director-general.

Anwar is on a whirlwind visit to his birth state, where he will later visit the Matriculation College in Kepala Batas for a dialogue, and Dell Global Business Centre Sdn Bhd in Bukit Mertajam.

Tonight, he will give three ceramahs in Pengkalan Kota, Karpal Singh Drive, and Permatang Pauh before flying back to Kuala Lumpur. – The Vibes, August 5, 2023