Despite Controversy, Melaka Gateway Project Still Wants To Revive Melaka Port As Global Business Hub
The project has been in works since 2014.
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In a press statement sighted by The Rakyat Post, the CEO of Kaj Development Sdn Bhd and founder of the Melaka Gateway project Datuk Michelle Ong has once again reiterated her goal of reviving Melaka as a global business hub.
The Melaka Gateway project is an ambitious one, involving development of 12 precincts including residential, commercial, cultural, entertainment, and lifestyle blocks. It also includes development on three off-shore islands, two of which will be man-made.
However, the project has faced controversy since it started in 2014, amidst criticisms of being a ‘white elephant’ and backlash from the Kristang community- Melaka’s ethnically Portugese community.
Most recently, the RM43 billion port project has been scrapped by the Melaka state government.
The Melaka Chief Minister’s office noted that the agreement with property developer KAJ Development, signed in October 2017, had expired in October 2020.
Naturally, Ong made her case against scrapping the project, claiming that the strategic advantage of the Straits of Melaka is wasted, as the state sits on major shipping and trading routes.
According to Ong, her emphasis was on creating an ecosystem that will expand Melaka’s economy past its local tourism.
It is with this project that we will be able to shift Melaka from a predominantly weekend economy to a 365 days economy.
Datuk Michelle Ong, founder of the Melaka Gateway project.
She also expects the project to provide over 40,000 jobs over the next 10 years and contribute 125 billion ringgit to Malaysia’s GDP by 2030.
In fact, she sees that the project can potentially boost Melaka as one of the top contributors to the nation’s GDP. The port has even been touted to be the largest in the region, overtaking Singapore.
Ong notes that her vision is shared by many, including foreign and local investors, and even our own government, including ex-Prime Ministers Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Restoring Melaka as a centre of international trade is our destiny but in order to achieve this in today’s world, what is essential is an ecosystem. If I had merely done land reclamation, it would not have worked.
Datuk Michelle Ong, founder of the Melaka Gateway project.
While the Melaka Gateway project is slated to continue, its future is uncertain.
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