GE14: Video of two PMs' exchange goes viral

PETALING JAYA: A video of the Prime Ministers of Malaysia and Singapore at a press conference in Singapore has gone viral after an off-the-cuff remark on the coming general election.

Speaking to the media after the eighth Singapore-Malaysia retreat in Singapore on Tuesday (Jan 16), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that the outcome of the 14th general election (GE14) would not change the nature of relations between the two countries.

His remark drew an immediate response from Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who said that this is "because you have confidence in the result", which saw the two leaders laughing.

Najib had said that while it is impossible to determine what the electorate will decide, an agenda can be offered for the people to decide on.

"We believe that the position of the current government is the position that will bring mutual benefit to Singapore and Malaysia. We stand by our policy, by our agenda and by our ability to deliver real tangible benefits to both the peoples of Malaysia and Singapore," he said.

The eighth annual retreat between Malaysian and Singapore leaders saw a number of agreements and memoranda of understanding signed between both countries.

Earlier Tuesday, the two countries signed the Rapid Transit System (RTS) agreement. Malaysia was represented by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan while Singapore was represented by its Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan.

The RTS, which was first mooted in 2010 during a leaders' retreat as part of an effort to increase connectivity links, will also see the start of the High Speed Rail (HSR) between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore in 2026.

On Monday (Jan 15) night, Najib and Lee launched the simultaneous opening of the Marina One and DUO joint development projects.

The development of Marina One and DUO, located in Marina South and Ophir-Rochor, was undertaken by M+S Pte Ltd ("M+S"), which is 60:40 owned by Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Temasek Holdings Ltd respectively.

Also present at the launching were Najib's wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and Lee's wife Ho Ching.