LABUAN, Sept 4 ― Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa said he will present a working paper on the proposed Labuan bridge to the Cabinet for approval for the request for proposal (RFP) in the next two weeks.

He said the proposed bridge would give a tremendous boost to the development of Labuan as Malaysia’s international business and financial centre.

"We are looking at the importance of the bridge, which is a game-changer (for Labuan's economic development). We must also look at the affected land for reclamation for a more sustainable infrastructure development,” he told reporters at the end of his two-day working visit to Labuan last night.

He said efforts to realise the long-standing proposal on the bridge must start now, with a briefing to the Cabinet soon.

"As the proposed bridge (project) will go through an open tender, we will take extra precaution on the selection of the developer. We hope to speed up its implementation,” he said.

Annuar said if an international company was chosen to construct the bridge, it must work together with local contractors.

He said the ministry’s officials had held preliminary discussions with the Sabah government and the latter supported the proposed bridge project.

Earlier reports said the proposed bridge will span 13km, from Tanjung Aru here to mainland Sabah, either at Mempakul or Membakut.

He said the proposed bridge should ideally be linked to the ongoing Pan Borneo Highway project connecting Sarawak and Sabah.

"If the Pan Borneo Highway can be linked to Labuan bridge, it will have a trickle-down effect on Labuan's socio-economy,” he said. ― Bernama