IWH speech transcript director Izaddeen bin Daud speech transcript

Iskandar Waterfront Holdings director Izaddeen bin Daud

Tuan-Tuan, Puan-Puan, Para Hadirin Yang Saya Hormati Sekalian
Syukur kita ke hadrat Allah SWT kerana dengan izinNya kita dapat bersama-sama hadir di majlis yang sungguh bermakna hari ini.

Terlebih dahulu, saya bagi pihak Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd dan rakan kongsi kita, iaitu China Railway Group Limited atau CREC, ingin merakamkan setinggi-tinggi penghargaan di atas kesudian tetamu kehormat kita, YAB Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Perdana Menteri Malaysia, kerana sudi meluangkan masa untuk menghadiri majlis ini.

Ucapan ribuan terima kasih dan setinggi-tinggi penghargaan juga ditujukan kepada semua Menteri-Menteri Kabinet, Ahli-Ahli Exco Kerajaan Johor and ketua-ketua jabatan and agensi kerajaan Persekutuan and Negeri, atas sokongan padu dan perhatian bagi memastikan majlis ini berjalan lancar.

As joint-venture partners, IWH and CREC, together with the Ministry of Finance (MoF), are very proud and happy to be associated with the Bandar Malaysia development in the heart of the city of Kuala Lumpur.

Today’s announcement of CREC’s commitment to invest US$2 billion in Bandar Malaysia for a new purpose-built integrated regional headquarters is a major milestone in our quest to develop and position Bandar Malaysia as the preferred destination for global investors and MNCs from around the world.

While CREC will be the first to set up its regional centre in Bandar Malaysia, I am pleased to inform that several other major players are also keen to follow sit and you can expect an announcement on this in the coming months.

Bandar Malaysia, with its strategic location, superb connectivity, excellent design and outstanding public amenities and features will be the preferred address for global companies seeking to establish or relocate regional operations here.

Towards this end, the IWH-CREC consortiums, together with MoF, are actively sourcing for local and international investors to join the Malaysian Government in the vision to transform Bandar Malaysia into a global city.

Bandar Malaysia when completed will serve as Malaysia’s gateway to the world through the High Speed Rail to Singapore and the proposed Pan Asean Rail Transit to Bangkok and beyond.

The development blueprint also includes an integrated underground city modeled after Canada’s Montreal underground city, with dedicated space for financial and commercial centers, tourism and shopping facilities, high-end corporate offices, an indoor theme park and themed theatres.

CREC, a Global Fortune 500 Company (ranked at No. 71 in 2015), will be the first to invest in this development. This mega China GLC will invest US$2 billion to build an integrated office complex in Bandar Malaysia which is destined to become the regional hub for MNCs from around the world.

With this project, CREC will consolidate all its current regional businesses and operations under one roof in this new regional headquarters in Bandar Malaysia

Today’s announcement about CREC’s commitment to set up its Regional Headquarters in Bandar Malaysia comes exactly three-months after its successful bid with IWH last December to acquire 60% of the equity in the Bandar Malaysia project from 1MDB Real Estate for RM7.41 billion.

The Bandar Malaysia development is now under the Private-Private Partnership (PPP) model with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) holding 40% of the development company and the IWC-CREC consortium holding the remaining 60% equity.

IWH is also a PPP company with the Johor State Government, through Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ) owning 40% of the company, with the balance 60% owned by Tan Sri Lim Kang Hoo through Credence Resource Sdn Bhd.

This shareholding structure effectively means that about 54% of the Bandar Malaysia project is now owned by the Federal and Johor State Governments via 1MDB-RE/MoF and KPRJ respectively

With the involvement of leading Chinese and Malaysian GLCs, the Bandar Malaysia development has now naturally become a Government-to-Government project.

For Johor the Bandar Malaysia development holds special significance because the State Government, through its shareholding in IWH, will be able to generate profits from this investment project, which could then be channeled for the wellbeing of the rakyat.

As Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin had said, Bandar Malaysia represents an opportunity for Johor. The State, through KPRJ, has direct equity in IWH which, together with CREC, is involved in this mega development in Kuala Lumpur.

The returns on investment and profits from this project will be brought back to Johor and by doing so, KPRJ could undertake things that will provide for the wellbeing of the rakyat. This is why Bandar Malaysia is so important to Johor.

I wish to put on record to heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the Federal Government, and especially to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, for his steadfast support for the Bandar Malaysia development.

Because this is capital intensive project, we are hopeful that the Prime Minister will soon announce a slew of new special incentives aimed at attracting investors, foreign GLCs, MNCs and financial institutions to set up base in Bandar Malaysia.

I also wish to thank the Johor State Government through Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin, for his invaluable advice and encouragement in IWH’s joint-venture with CREC to bid for and develop Bandar Malaysia.

To CREC, our strategic JV partner, we are truly indebted for your readiness to join-hands with us at IWH to take on this massive undertaking to develop and position Banda Malaysia as a world-class city.

With CREC’s technical knowhow and financial resources, we are confident the development blueprint can indeed be achieved within the stipulated time frame. This we promise you!

Sebagai penutup, sekali lagi saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Menteri Besar Johor, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and semua tetamu kerana meluangkan masa untuk bersama pada pagi ini.

Saya juga ingin merakamkan penghargaan tulus ikhlas kepada semua jabatan dan agensi kerajaan atas bantuan dan kerjasama mereka dalam menjayakan majlis ini.

Sekian, Terima Kasih