KUALA LUMPUR – Putrajaya has big plans for opposition-led Kelantan, the poorest state in the peninsula and the second poorest in the country.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last night announced RM20 million for improvements to Kelantan’s irrigation system and gave the green light for upgrading the state’s Sultan Ismail Petra Airport (LTSIP) to international airport standards.
The airport upgrade, which is already ongoing, will also have the LTSIP runway extended by 400m to accommodate larger aircraft.
“Phase one is already completed and (Kelantan) Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Nassuruddin Daud expressed his gratitude but he asked that a 400m-long runway be added to turn it into an international airport.
“As such, the federal government has agreed to extend the runway and we will do this soonest as possible so that haj pilgrims can fly directly from Kota Bharu to Jeddah,” Bernama reported Anwar saying last night at the Madani 2024 Aidilfitri Celebration in Tunjong, Kelantan.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook has been asked to ensure that upgrades to the airport are expedited, he added.
The state will also receive RM20 million to upgrade irrigation systems in the Kemubu agricultural area.
“I have agreed for the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to find the best way to resolve this issue, which is expected to involve a RM20 million allocation to be used to purchase new pipes to draw water for the benefit of the people and agriculture in Kelantan,” Anwar said.
In 2022, PAS-led Kelantan was ranked the second poorest state in Malaysia with a 13.2% poverty rate. The opposition party has ruled the state since the 1990s. However, Sabah is the state with the highest poverty rate, at 19.7%.
In October last year, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said Kelantan had a total of 67,772 heads of poor and hardcore poor families, the highest in Peninsular Malaysia, based on a census recorded the previous month.
Anwar last night said he would be addressing the issue of household heads in the hardcore poor category in Kelantan “within the next two months”.
He said based on a list of those in the hardcore poor in the state, there were 1,000 household heads in this category.
He also encouraged greater exposure for Kelantan through foreign investments, noting that he had urged Japan and Qatar to explore such opportunities in the state.
“During my visits to Japan and Qatar previously, I suggested to the leaders of those countries to also consider Kelantan as an investment location, alongside other states.”
“Even though I do not have a mandate from the Kelantan state government, I consider it my responsibility to do my utmost to help the people,” Anwar said.
Prior to the event last night, the prime minister held a closed-door meeting with Nassuruddin on development for the state, after which Nassuruddin thanked Anwar for treating Kelantan “equally” with other states. – May 3, 2024