NOV 17 – I wish to correct several assertions made by Anil Netto, “Pakatan: Pro-business or pro-people ? — Anil Netto” in the Aliran article on his contention that the Penang state government has bowed down to corporate interests. This is untrue.
The Penang state government holds on to and remains a people-centric government that subscribes to Competency, Accountability and Transparency(CAT). For this reason, the Penang state government has reiterated that there will be full consultation for all major public projects. One should not listen to rumour and treat it as fact.
The Penang state government sympathises with the demands for cancellation of projects by the people affected by projects of those approved by the previous state government.
However any cancellation of the projects approved, such as those in Tanjung Bunga as demanded by the residents, would entail hundreds of millions of ringgit in compensation that would bankrupt the state as it is money that the state government cannot afford.
The state government is still paying off losses of tens of millions of ringgit from land scams committed by the previous BN state government. The PR state government will not fulfill the wishes of BN to see it financially bankrupt.
Much as the state government would like to help the residents in Kampung Buah Pala, the state government cannot defy a Federal Court order or be held in contempt of court.
In subscribing to the rule of law, one can not uphold it when it is in your favour but disregard it when it does not benefit you.
However the state government has successfully obtained from the developer a compensation of a RM 600,000 double-storey terrace houses for 24 of the residents who accepted, the highest compensation amount in history offered in recognition of the plight of the residents who were staying there for nearly 150 years.
What the state government has done is to tighten controls, increase oversight and issue stop work orders over these HILLSLOPE projects, including against developers who have given donations to Penang’s Partners Against Poverty programme, a PR state government initiative to ensure every family in Penang gets a minimum RM 500 a month to become the first state to wipe out hard core poverty in Malaysia.
What is wrong in helping hard-core poor? For Anil to hint of pay-offs or trade-offs to developers because of their donations to help hard-core poor is mischievous and insidious and in common with those who wish to undermine PR state governments with allegations of financial wrongdoing or even corruption.
When the state government reduced the height of buildings within the George Town heritage area to preserve, protect and promote heritage conservation and our Unesco status, a developer for a project approved by the previous BN state government made huge demands for compensation.
Why is Anil strangely silent on this? Does this mean that he is also in cahoots with the developer as he regularly implies when decisions made are not against the developers? And who is going to help us pay all this compensation? Anil?
There are procedures to follow and rules to comply, all of which which entail financial costs. When action taken does not place the state government in danger of being bankrupt or short of funds for social development programmes, the PR state government has never hesitated to act.
Anil refuses to give credit to the state government’s firm and unyielding stance in rejecting the RM25 billion Penang Global & City Centre project, which was announced during the very first days of the Penang PR state administration without any pressure from NGOs.
Let no one question the integrity of Penang state government and its commitment to fighting corruption wherever it exists. This uncompromising stance has been commended not only by the Attorney-General Report 2008 but the CAT governance praised by Transparency International, a first for any state or Federal government in Malaysia.
Whether he realises it or not, Anil is singing the same tune as BN apologists who yearn for the return of the crony government of BN in Penang.
It is not easy to reform a government accustomed to the excesses and bad habits of the previous [BN] state government for the past 51 years. Mistakes may be made and corrective measures are being taken.
But PR state government will never forget that it is the people’s yearning for change that borught about the political tsunami of March 8 2008 and will ensure that the difference the people wishes to see will be implemented.
* Jeffrey Chew is the Special Investment Officer to Chief Minister of Penang.
The penulitimate line had a factural error "the previous PR state government for the past 51 years" and was corrected accordingly. Ed.
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