An announcement soon on who will represent Malaysia at a ceremony to mark the joining of the Malaysian and Singapore sections of a bridge over the Johore Strait in July is expected to be a pointer to the state of relations between the two countries following their recent diplomatic row. After visiting the Malaysian side of the construction site, Malaysia's Works Minister S. Samy Vellu said there was a 'likelihood' that each country's Prime Minister would officiate at the topping-out ceremony. But he added that the Malaysian Cabinet had yet to decide who would represent Malaysia on the occasion. Relations between Malaysia and Singapore were severely strained when it was disclosed that the island republic's Senior Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, had made disparaging remarks about the Malaysian state of Johore in a court affidavit in connection with a defamation suit. Malaysia accepted an apology from Mr Lee but Malaysian leaders have said it would take time and effort to restore relations to their previous level. Neither the recent hiccup in relations nor a similar quarrel last year have affected work on the bridge, which will provide an alternative crossing to the usually congested Causeway, which was built more than 70 years ago. Mr Samy Vellu said the bridge was 86 per cent completed and would be finished by the end of the year.
