Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has dismissed a news report that Putrajaya is mulling a second casino licence for Forest City.
“On the casino licence, it is untrue…That’s a lie,” he told reporters in a curt reply at the Madani Muhibbah Aidilfitri in Putrajaya on Thursday (April 25).
Bloomberg reported that Berjaya founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan and Genting Group’s Tan Sri Lim Kok Tay were in early discussions with the government on opening a casino in Forest City, Johor.
The report, quoting sources, said the casino project would revive the RM478.35 bil Forest City project.
As gambling was a highly regulated sector, casino licences would have to be renewed on a quarterly basis at the discretion of the finance minister.
Genting Group holds the only casino licence in Malaysia. The group has held the licence since 1969 and operates the country’s only casino in Genting Highlands. – The Star