REMBAU: The growth in Luak Rembau must be improved especially in the aspect of development and tourism to bolster its socio-economy, said the Undang (territorial chief who still plays an important role in Negri Sembilan) of Luak Rembau Datuk Lela Maharaja Datuk Muhamad Sharip Othman (pix).
He said that, although Luak Rembau (an administrative area under the Perpatih Custom) has ample basic amenities, but more effort was needed to boost the economy of the local populace including further increasing the promotion of Rembau as a must visit tourism destination.
‘’The facilities in the district such as hotels and shop lots must be further developed to entice visitors. Indeed, Rembau has its own attractions, not only its renowned cuisine such as ‘masak lemak cili api’, but it is also very close to Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Selangor and Melaka and very strategic for investors.
‘’Development in Rembau is being carried out in accordance with plans by the state government. However, it is not enough and must be improved further with focuses on the industry, tourism and agriculture,’’ he told Bernama in an interview here, recently.
Rembau, which is located on the west of Negri Sembilan, has good road and public transportations connecting it to the state capital Seremban and its surrounding areas.
‘’In terms of public transportation facilities, currently, Rembau is connected to a commuter system which expedites the public going to Seremban and Kuala Lumpur,’’ he said.
Muhamad Sharip said that a holistic planning in Luak Rembau must be done to enable the area to also develop on par with the other areas especially Seremban, which is just next door.
Rembau has several higher institutions of learning such as the Pedas Industrial Training Institute, Higher National Youth Skills Institute, Rembau Mara Higher Skills College, Rembau Community College, and the latest, the Universiti Teknologi Mara Rembau Campus.
The manufacturing sector is more focused at the Chembong industrial area and the ‘halal’ industrial park in Pedas, and in terms of tourism, the district has the Gunung Datuk recreational forest, Wet World Hotspring Resort Theme Park in Pedas, the firefly area in Sungai Timun and the replica of the palace of Raja Melewar.
‘’Everything is there, but if it can be further improved and more investors brought in, it will benefit the local populace. There are also several historical remnants in Rembau which can be developed as tourist attractions. Both the assets can influence the number of tourist arrivals here,’’ he said.
Other than the aspect of development and tourism, he also hoped that the state government and the private sector could spur further the agriculture sector in the area.
He said that Rembau has 5,269.01 customary land covering village land, orchards and padi fields, and involving 9,756 owners.
‘’The customary land has been developed with pineapples, sugarcane, maize and vegetables while Felcra, Risda and the Farmer’s Organisation Authority (LPP) have also planted rubber and oil palm.
‘’The customary land must be more aggressively developed on with large scale agricultural projects. This can be done if there is consensus between the land owners with agricultural companies,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, on the developments of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) in Jelebu and the Malaysia Vision Valley 2.0 (MVV 2.0), he said they were good plans for Negeri Sembilan as Rembau too would be enjoying the spray.
The construction of ECRL would see a new alignment, namely, Kota Bharu-Mentakab-Jelebu-Kuala Kelawang-Bangi/Kajang-Putrajaya and subsequently Port Klang.
Meanwhile, MVV encompassed four major clusters, namely, industry, education, tourism and services and the development of a mega project in the next 30 years by Sime Darby Property Bhd, which was the sixth national economic corridor covering an area of more than 153,300ha. — Bernama
