Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob insisted today his administration has no problems running the east coast state despite its limited finances.
The PAS leader said that Kelantan may not be as wealthy or as developed as the other states, but it was still blessed.
“We have no port, highways or international airports to draw more investors.
“But we can still manage the state just fine. This is what is called a blessing,” he was quoted saying in the state capital of Kota Baru in response to remarks by Gua Musang MP Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.
Razaleigh who is also a Kelantan prince told reporters in Parliament earlier today that the PAS-led state was in dire need of financial assistance as it was being left behind development-wise, resulting in a slew of socio-economic problems.
According to Razaleigh, Kelantan had little income apart from logging.
However, Ahmad said his government was adding to its coffers through royalties on minerals, including from gold mining.
“With the hard rock gold mining project by CNMC in Sokor, Tanah Merah, insya Allah we cab expect to increase the state revenue,” the MB was quoted saying.
He maintained that Kelantan had no problems carrying out development projects with the money it had.
“We manage with prudence. We ensure our revenue and our expenditure are balanced,” he was quoted saying.
