JOHOR BAHRU, -- The Johor state government and Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) need to quickly implement efforts to revive the dying Johor Bahru city and bring back visitors."It should be called 'Street of Harmony' because on Jalan Trus we can find a Catholic Church, Methodist Church, Hindu Temple, Chinese Temple, Gurdwara Sikh Temple and Indian Muslim Mosque, located close to each other.
"It (Jalan Trus) represents the harmony among all races in Johor Bahru, and should be highlighted as a tourist attraction," he told reporters after visiting Jalan Trus here today.According to Nur Jazlan, he had voiced his proposal on developing the street to the state government and the suggestion had been welcomed by the IRDA.
He said Jalan Trus was as unique as attractions found in Penang and Melaka, but the road and public amenities need to be upgraded.Nur Jazlan said the once bustling city has become lifeless following the relocation of the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complexs from Tambak Johor to the Sultan Iskandar Building, Bukit Chagar.
Due to the closure of the customs complex in Tambak Johor, visitors going in and out of Singapore, be it pedestrians or vehicles, no longer have to go through Johor Baharu city.Nur Jazlan said this caused traders in the city to complain about the lack of customers, and many decided to shut down their business."Business in Johor Bahru is badly affected at the moment," he said, adding that traders were fighting to stay afloat.
He said the future of traders would be affected further following the state government's move to relocate its employees from the city to the state government's new administrative centre in Nusajaya, this year.Nur Jazlan said, Johor Bahru, which was once a prime city in the country, is lagging far behind compared with Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Petaling Jaya in Selangor.
"The state government and IRDA need to come up with ways to bring back Johor Baharu's glorious days. These efforts need to be implemented quickly," he said.The IRDA's focus on developing Nusajaya, he said, also made matters worse and he urged them to be more balanced in the development of the economic corridor.The development of Johor Bahru and Nusajaya should be balanced, but more attention must be given to Johor Bahru because it has existed for years with the existing infrastructure, he said.
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