Rural and Regional Development Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that ‘Low Yat 2' will open 'very soon'.

Ismail spent the afternoon visiting the third floor of Menara Mara on Jalan Raja Laut, Kuala Lumpur, which for now has been renamed 'Pusat Jualan IT@Busana, Menara Mara'.

“This afternoon, I went to check on renovation works done at Pusat IT Mara to ensure everything is going smoothly and it can be completed on schedule,” he said in a Facebook posting today.

Earlier, Ismail had said the Mara IT Centre will be at Menara Mara, with a logo designing competition under way.

"Don't worry. We won't use the name 'Low Yat 2'. The competition to design the logo and name are ongoing.

"Thousands of applications had been received by Mara. Insyaallah (God willing), we will chose the best name and logo," he said in an earlier posting.

Ismail Sabri said upon completion, scheduled for November, the IT centre would accommodate about 30 booths, as reported in Bernama .

"The sales centre, which focuses on retail and wholesale of telecommunication products and computer repair makes room for more Bumiputera entrepreneurs and businessmen to expand their businesses," said the minister in the news report.

Priority for bumi entrepreneurs

Asked whether Bumiputera entrepreneurs could still apply to start businesses there, it quoted him saying: "We will consider their applications and if there is overwhelming response, we will consider opening up another floor.

"Priority will be given to Bumiputera entrepreneurs and businessmen. If there is non-Bumiputera application, we will consider it."

The state news agency also quoted the minister saying the public could propose a name for the centre before month-end, with the winners receiving a RM5,000, RM3,000 and RM1,000 for first, second and third prizes, respectively.

The Umno minister mooted the setting up of a 'Low Yat 2', comprising of stalls run by Malay IT retailers, last month.

This was after a riot outside Low Yat Plaza ( photo ), a popular IT and gadget hub, on July 13, following a mobile phone theft which was later spun on social media as a case of 'Chinese cheating Malays'.

The minister had earned a lot of flak over the proposal, but Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia sang praises on him, urging him to "carry on".

His plan has invited scorn from netizens and is criticised by other politicians who say it is racist to set up an all-Malay IT retail centre.