Former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak mentioned way back in 2017 that RM30 million will be made available to build a race track in Sungai Petani, Kedah. The former Prime Minister said then, “The track will benefit the youth, there will be no more need for ‘mat rempit’ (illegal street racers) to race on the streets. They can race all they want on a track then.”
Many flipped out at the huge costs and said the funds could be put to better use to improve public infrastructure and so on. That project hit many snags along the way but as of August this year, Malaysian Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, mooted the idea of building a drag strip in every state in the country to give youths the proper venue to carry out motorsports activities. And with that, the project is back on track.
The current PM added that youths would gain knowledge through training, courses and clinics, and this would help in scouting new talents for participation in motor racing at the state and national level.
During the recent Malaysian Budget 2023 announcement, Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said that the government would allocate RM20 million to build dragstrips in the country. However, there was no further mention about how the allocation would be used or for how many tracks.
“So far, two drag racing circuits have been built, in Terengganu and Melaka,” the Prime Minister noted back in August.
What do you think about allocating public funds for racing circuits? Yay or nay?
