Dr M demolishes Najib’s Merdeka tower
(Free Malaysia Today) – The man instrumental for putting Malaysia on cloud nine, quite literally by constructing one of the world’s tallest buildings, is unconvinced about a project aimed at topping his feat.
Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, whose 22-year tenure was littered with the biggest, tallest and longest achievements, had put current premier Najib Tun Razak’s 100-storey Warisan Merdeka project on shaky foundation.
According to the real architect behind the 88-storey Petronas Twin Towers, Najib’s brainchild was simply “not needed”.
Speaking at the “Revisiting Vision 2020” conference here, Mahathir warned that the upcoming skyscraper would be a bane for real estate in the Klang Valley.
“If you ask me, we don’t need a 100-storey tower,” he said, responding to a query from the floor.
Mahathir added that when he went around the city, he often came across buildings with “for sale” and “for rent” signboards.
“This means we already have a lot of buildings,” he said, drawing a resounding applause.
Encouraged by the favourable response to his remarks, Mahathir quipped: “Does that mean you agree with me and are against the government?”
Although a medical doctor by training, Mahathir, who is known for his acute economic skills leading to the coining of the term “Mahathirnomics”, went on to paint a bleak picture.
He warned that Malaysia, with its already ailing real estate sector, could witness the property bubble bursting, just like in Dubai and Japan.
“We may not be building like crazy but we are crazy building. There is no one to stay in these buildings. Those who buy, buy it to speculate and sell at a higher price.
“There will come a time when you cannot sell at a higher price and there is no one to buy (the buildings),” he added.
