Consider new strategies to lure investors, Leiking urges State Govt

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Shafie (centre), accompanied by Leiking (right), executing the gimmick to launch the MITI Day 2019 yesterday.

PENAMPANG: Cut the red tapes and consider new strategies on land and electricity cost issues to entice foreign investors to bank on Sabah, urged International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Darell Leiking.

Leiking said costly land and electricity, and “too much bureaucracy” have caused some investors to shy away even though they are keen to come to Sabah.

“A lot of investors want to come here so we need our state government, the authorities here to reconsider new strategies to entice them to come here. Land is one thing, because land is too costly. Because if land is too costly, they won’t come,” he said he said after officiating at the Malaysia Autoshow Sabah 2019 launch at the Sabah Cultural Centre here yesterday.

“Electricity cost… We need to somehow find a baseline where investors would find it attractive to come in.

“Then, of course, the ease of doing business. We need to make sure that if they do come in here, they don’t need to face too much bureaucracy, red tape. I think not only in Sabah but all over Malaysia, to really make it very easy for investors to come in,” he added.

Leiking said Sabah needed to come up with innovative offers as it is losing investors to other Malaysian states and neighbouring countries.

“I am sure the state government has it strategies but based on what I see, the reason why many investors shy away from us is that the cost of entry is too high for them,” he said.

“Because if we don’t (come up with solutions), these guys would go somewhere else. In Sarawak, they are already giving almost free land (to investors).

“Soon you will have the Philippines doing the same thing, Kalimantan doing the same thing.

“I am just giving an example. We have to be innovated. You know you can make it slightly cheaper in the beginning. Then make a deal with them, after they have already reached their economy of scales then we can come up to another new way of charging,” he added.