Penang exco: Kimma harping on non-issues

Syed Ibrahim Kader rapped for claims that Indian Muslims in Penang are being ignored by Pakatan government.

GEORGE TOWN: A state executive councillor today hit out at Senator Syed Ibrahim Kader for spreading lies that the Penang state government had sidelined the Indian Muslim community from mainstream development programmes.

Abdul Malik Kassim chided the Kimma president for his continued ingratiation to his political masters as a gesture of gratitude for his recent appointment as a senator.

“Syed Ibrahim should not mortgage the principle of truth and dignity by disrupting the harmony and prosperity enjoyed by Indian Muslims in the state.

“Since 2008, the Pakatan Rakyat state government has taken care Indian Muslim affairs better than ever,” said Malik, the Batu Maung state representative.

He said the state government was committed to providing assistance and opportunities to all ethnic groups in the state, including Indian Muslims, in mainstream development.

He added the state government regularly engaged the Indian Muslim community pertaining to issues of religion, mosques and endowments properties.

Syed Ibrahim said today that Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s administration had sidelined and isolated Indian Muslims from mainstream state development.

‘Pakatan fair to all’

However, Malik said that being an Umno crony, Syed Ibrahim had attempted to portray a bleak gloomy picture just because he could not stomach Pakatan’s success story in Penang.

He claimed that apart from practicing competency, accountability and transparency (CAT), the state government had always been a people-orientated administration.

“The current government does not practice the cronyism and nepotism as was done by the previous Barisan Nasional government,” he said.

He pointed out that the Penang World Heritage celebrations showed that the state government had included the Indian Muslim community in its development programme.

The Penang Islamic Religious Council (MAINPP), he said, had also given extra attention to address the community’s issues.

He rebuked Syed Ibrahim as among a few, who want to become ‘Mamak’ heroes by harping on non-issues.
“Pakatan government has been fair and just to all regardless of their political, ethnic and religious backgrounds,” said Malik, a local PKR leader.