JOHOR BARU: Five Barisan Nasional candidates contesting in the Greater Johor Baru area have unveiled a joint manifesto. They said a regional approach is needed to address issues that cut across constituency boundaries.
The five MCA candidates are Teow Chia Ling (Puteri Wangsa state seat), Chan San San (Johor Jaya), Bong Seng Heng (Stulang), Tan Hiang Kee (Skudai) and Tai Chee Chee (Senai).
They said the five-year plan marks a shift away from the traditional approach of focusing on individual constituencies.
"Localised solutions are no longer sufficient, especially with major projects such as the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), the Johor-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link and the Forest City Special Financial Zone expected to reshape the region," they said.
"The geographical and economic borders between constituencies have effectively dissolved so Greater Johor Baru must operate as a single, synchronised economic engine," they added in a joint statement on Friday (July 3).
The candidates said each constituency has its own strengths that could complement one another. Senai serves as a logistics and aviation hub, Skudai as an education and healthcare centre, Stulang as a coastal commercial gateway while Puteri Wangsa and Johor Jaya are key commercial and consumer hubs.
"Challenges such as worsening traffic congestion, flash floods, jobs for youths and outflow of talent to Singapore requires coordinated planning rather than separate constituency-level solutions," they said.
"Although Johor attracted RM237.9bil in investments between 2020 and the first half of 2025, residents continue to face systemic burdens and our five-year plan is designed to address the issues," they added.
Other issues they hope to tackle are the ageing drainage systems, rising cost of living, opportunities for youths to own homes and bureaucratic hurdles faced by small and medium enterprises.
Under the joint manifesto, the candidates pledged to improve connectivity. They also proposed a regional drainage masterplan and stricter environmental requirements for new developments to reduce flash floods.
They are pushing for higher wages to create more high-value jobs and expand Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes. They also want to improve access to affordable housing, provide greater support for young entrepreneurs and improve tourism.
On healthcare, they pledged to push for the construction of Hospital Sultanah Aminah 2 in Skudai. They also want upgrades for community clinics in Puteri Wangsa to improve access to medical services.
"The proposals are aimed at ensuring Greater Johor Baru is better positioned to support Johor's long-term economic growth while improving the quality of life for residents," they said.
Greater Johor Baru covers areas under the Johor Baru City Council, Iskandar Puteri City Council, Pasir Gudang City Council and Kulai Municipal Council.
