Najib speaks at the 16th Majlis Amanat Perdana Perkhidmatan Awam event in Putrajaya April 4, 2018. — Picture by Zuraneeza Zulkifli

PUTRAJAYA, April 4 — Failed states are states that built incomplete tunnels and whose residents face regular water crises 10 years after a change in government, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.

Najib, who is also Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman, took a swipe at the leaders of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) pact governing Penang and Selangor, two of the country’s most developed states during his speech with civil servants here.

“As far as I know, what is said to be failed state is when they build a tunnel, which is still unfinished.

“When there is always flood, [they] ask our help, and we and the civil servants are the ones who have to settle.

“If this is not a failed state, then what is?” he questioned.

Though Najib did not name the state, he was most likely referring to DAP-led Penang, which had been inundated by several floods last year.

He also alluded to the PKR-led Selangor government, which has been facing frequent water supply disruptions that affect hundreds of thousands of residents in the Greater Klang Valley yearly.

“That does not include the latest (disruptions). After almost 10 years in power, problems with treated water are still not resolved. That is what failed means, actually.

“It is to the point that some say that in Selangor, leaders get votes, but the people get buckets,” Najib added.

Najib also indirectly criticised Penang Chief minister Lim Guan Eng over an incident in which the latter allegedly sang a song deriding the Goods and Services Tax in front of schoolchildren in Penang.

He then assured civil servants that his administration would continue to strengthen education workers and institutions in the country.