Najib regrets efforts to woo investors considered as selling the country

Najib, who is also UMNO president, said his efforts to boost the national economy by bringing foreign investors to Malaysia were also criticised and labelled as trying to sell the country.

"If we don't bring in investors, they say we have failed, but if we bring in investments, they say we are selling the country. This is a political game.

"When have efforts to bring in investments become a matter of sovereignty? All this while there has been no such thing. What is the difference between investments from Japan, the United States, Europe and China?" he asked in a special interview programme in conjunction with the 2016 UMNO General Assembly.

The hour-long programme was moderated by Hamdan Ahmir and participated by Utusan Malaysia Editor Datuk Zulkefli Hamzah and RTM television moderator Sayed Munawar Sayed Mohd Mustar.

Najib, who is also Finance Minister, gave an assurance that foreign investments in this country were based on the local content as stipulated by the government policy.

"Don't be taken in by such ploys (accusing foreign investment as selling off the country) because such thinking is beyond the rational way of thinking," he said.

Asked on the East Coast Rail Line (ECRL), which was criticised as being costly, Najib refuted the criticism and described the RM55 billion project as unique in terms of the topography and surface of the earth.

The government would establish a benchmark valuation based on projects in other places and the management valuation that the ECRL was 'value for money'.

He said that with the attractive project package that included funding by the Exim Bank of China with favourable terms, the ECRL was a project that was capable of boosting the economy of the east coast states up to 1.5 per cent.

Najib said the implementation of the ECRL could also reduce the development gap between the west coast and areas in the east coast.

The construction of the 600-kilometer ECRL was announced by Najib when tabling the 2017 Budget last month.