PUTERI Harbour, Ledang Heights, Educity, Afiat Healthpark. These names don't ring a bell to Singaporeans, or even to most Malaysians. But the developers of Johor's Iskandar Malaysia hope these will be as popular as Johor Baru malls and hypermarkets in coming years.
These projects are part of the southern Johor economic zone. Just drive past the Second Link bridge at Tuas and you can see a whole lot of earth being dug up at various places.
Although the Iskandar Malaysia project - previously called Iskandar Development Region - consists of the whole of southern Johor, the jewel of the development, in my view, are those projects centred around Nusajaya near Tuas.
Iskandar, named after the Sultan of Johor, covers 2,217 square kilometres, about three times the size of Singapore. The Nusajaya area could be attractive to Singaporeans because it is closer to home, and one can (mostly) escape the traffic madness of using the Causeway to get across the border.
Another reason is that, Nusajaya and its surrounding areas will have well-planned roads and other infrastructure - unlike Johor Baru which grew organically over the decades, and thus haphazardly, like most big cities.
Iskandar will, among other attractions, have Puteri Harbour, a marina for yachts and sea-facing villas (the houses face green trees of the fenced-up Kranji shoreline).
Ledang Heights is being sold as a bungalow enclave for the rich and famous. There's a golf course nearby.
Educity will consist of specialised university faculties and private boarding schools. The promoters see costs being lower than in Singapore.
And then there is Afiat Healthpark which Johor wants to raise as a healthcare hub. There is also a theme park and a financial centre in the works.
Officials say RM40.25 billion (S$17 billion) worth of investments have been committed for Iskandar - nearly half from private sector funds. But Iskandar officials privately ask the same question: Why the limited numbers of Singaporean investors? The lack of interest from major Singapore government-linked companies has been quite pronounced.
I was privately asked yesterday the same questions by the officials when I turned up at the update briefing on Iskandar. My answer was to refer them to what former premier Tun Dr Mahathir said when he was in Johor in March last year, when he was on the attack against the policies of Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi.
I was at that function in Kulai when he spoke to a pro-Umno crowd, expressing his fear that Singaporean Chinese investors will buy up land in Iskandar. Speaking about the British rule over Malaysia before it gained independence, Dr Mahathir had said: "We became slaves in our country because we gave it to others."
He added that "Malays will be enslaved again by foreigners" if the Iskandar plan is followed through. In May this year, the former premier said the same thing when speaking in Johor about Iskandar: "After the land is sold, the Malays will be driven to live at the edge of the forest and even in the forest itself."
"In the end, the area in Iskandar Malaysia will be filled with Singaporeans and populated with only 15 per cent Malays."
He was inferring to Singapore where Malays form 15 per cent of the population. I told these Iskandar officials that except a few, Singaporeans fretted about investing in Johor where they are worried about getting the wrong reception after announcing an investment deal.
True, Dr Mahathir is not in power anymore. But he still wields a big influence among Malays. And then there is another matter that Singaporeans are much worried about when it comes to Johor - crime.
Johor crime rate is "high", people say. Although few Singaporeans figure in the crime statistics, the few horrific stories published in the papers about what happened to those Singaporeans who are crime victims scare many people - be it snatch thefts, car jackings, or house break-ins.
To its credit, the Iskandar Regional Development Authority is working hard to ensure the security of property and people in the development zone. And the developers are upfront about the crime problem.
Go to Iskandar's website and you can click on 'Crime Statistics for Iskandar Malaysia'. The data presented showed that there is a general drop between July and August, although there is a spike in violent crime. Perhaps it would be useful if a longer term trend is shown.
Anyway, the worries about crime persist as long as there are horrible headlines in the papers. Today, I received an email reply to my article about the launch of Iskandar of its Educity education hub, someone emailed me: "You mean get educated and robbed at the same time?"
It wasn't a very fair comment but like it or not, crime and Johor has become synonymous as far as many Singaporeans are concerned. I know of Singaporeans who love to drive to Malaysia, but Johor is just an entry point. They drive quickly north and tend to buy properties in Malacca or Kuala Lumpur instead.
And then there is that old worry that investing in property in Malaysia is bad because the federal or state government, or both, often change the rules. Or that no one offers to help, and the law is seemingly lax, if a developer took their money and then ran away.
So Iskandar officials, will have some way to go to convince Singaporeans that they should invest in the upcoming facilities just across the border. Remove worries about not being totally welcomed and about crime, and then Singaporeans will come in droves as investors, not just as shoppers and food lovers. Or to drive quickly north to Malacca and KL.
Reme Ahmad
The Straits Times
Singapore
22/11/08
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