Kulai aims for city status by 2026

INNOVATION and creativity are needed to help elevate the Kulai Municipal Council (MPKu) to city council status in the next two years.

Council president Mohd Fahmi Salam said this year marked the 20th anniversary of MPKu as a municipality and it aimed to upgrade to a city council by 2026.

“In line with the vast developments in the south of Johor, also known as Greater Johor Baru, MPKu has to inject innovation and freshness whether it is for everyday tasks or the initiatives and projects we implement.

“Being part of the Greater Johor Baru agenda, along with other councils such as the Johor Baru City Council, Iskandar Puteri City Council and Pasir Gudang City Council, I encourage all MPKu staff to think out-of-the-box and get creative.

“Look at the Kulai Fast Lane concept that we introduced. It was well-received by the public and other local councils in Johor. Other states plan to emulate it,” he said when chairing the monthly full board meeting.

The fast lane concept, one-stop centre that handles all applications by investors and businesses to set up operations, eased applications and sped up the approval process.

The Housing and Local Government Ministry website stated that a local council would only be considered a city council when its population exceeded 150,000 people, fiscally sustainable with annual revenue of not less than RM100mil and is able to provide high quality services to the people.

MPKu’s jurisdiction spanned 74,700ha, which included the Senai International Airport, Johor Premium Outlet as well as areas such as Kulai, Senai, Saleng, Kelapa Sawit, Seelong, Bukit Batu, Sedenak, Air Bemban and Sengkang.

At the meeting, Mohd Fahmi also emphasised improving the quality of life for Kulai folk.

He said the council planned to step up public safety by adding 300 more closed-circuit television cameras around the district, being more business-friendly and making it more convenient for ratepayers to pay their taxes.

Separately, he also launched MPKu’s own TikTok account – mpku_official – to keep the estimated 330,000 residents in Kulai updated on the council’s plans and programmes.

“We want to improve our communication channels and the platform is one of the ways we can engage with the residents and get feedback from them.

“We will share important announcements, activities and updates related to the council and Kulai,” he said, adding that the council used to only disseminate information online through its website and Facebook page before this.