In a Facebook post, he said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad was in fact scheduled to make an announcement on the RM4 billion project in Johor Bahru at 3pm this afternoon.

“This is totally misleading and unethical journalism!” he wrote. “You run a front-page news based on unverified and unnamed sources?”

According to the report, the government will not make a decision on the 4km RTS Link connecting Bukit Chagar in Johor to Woodlands in Singapore.

Citing sources, it said the latest request for an extension was made known to Singapore on Monday.

It also said the transport ministry had been unable to resolve certain issues on its side.

“These issues include the relocation of the RTS depot, currently proposed to be in Singapore, and the rail system to be used,” the report said.

A bilateral agreement was signed in January 2018 involving Singapore’s SMRT and Malaysia’s Prasarana Malaysia. The joint venture was supposed to be completed by 2024.

Earlier reports said if Malaysia decides to terminate the project, the cost incurred by Putrajaya would be around S$66 million.

The RTS Link, which is expected to ferry up to 10,000 passengers per hour each way, was mooted to ease traffic congestion.