LANGKAWI: Malaysia can achieve the objective of being a developed country earlier than 2030 if it applies 5G technology properly for development, says Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The Prime Minister said the vision could perhaps be attained by 2025.
“Malaysia can be better administered with 5G technology because it enables productivity to increase as the people can make choices faster and more accurately, ” he told reporters here yesterday.
Also present were Communi-cations and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo, Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Tun Mahathir and Malaysian Com-munications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) chairman Al-Ishsal Ishak.
Dr Mahathir said 5G technology was very comprehensive and gave the most amount of information to help one make decisions.
“Malaysia should be better administered with 5G because things can be done much more efficiently and done by people who are knowledgeable. If you don’t have the knowledge, you can always access people with the knowledge.
“So, my hope is that everybody learns how to make use of 5G. The environment is totally different, not like before, ” he said.
He gave the example that with 5G apps, paramedics could get information from experts and decide what to do.
At the same time, Dr Mahathir said if someone was going to the hospital, the hospital would be prepared to receive the patient because it already had the information in advance.
“It’s the same case with agriculture, with government departments in terms of administration and also in the case of the police, ” he said.
“Certainly, you will find that what you are doing is actually known to the police. If you do something wrong, you will get into trouble, even parking at the wrong place.
“Now, we expose ourselves to being known to the police and everybody else. Do be careful now that we have 5G in Langkawi.
“So, when you come to Langkawi, please behave yourself, ” he said to laughter from his audience.
Earlier, Dr Mahathir also visited the 5G Command Centre at the Langkawi police headquarters here.
When opening the 5G Malaysia International Conference, Gobind said the development of a vibrant and sustainable digital industry was critical for the growth of a high-income national economy and for boosting the people’s purchasing power to ensure a brighter future for all.
He said this would ensure that the country’s wealth was enjoyed by all strata of society in line with the government’s Shared Prosperity Vision.
“The rollout of infrastructure and services is not an end in itself but rather part of the Shared Prosperity Vision of Malaysia, ” he said.
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