CHIEF Minister Chow Kon Yeow has reiterated that the decision to retain Umno as part of the state unity government was reached through consensus among the Pakatan Harapan (PH) leadership in Penang.
He said the decision was made on Aug 8 after the respective parties within PH — DAP, PKR and Amanah — had discussed the matter internally and presented their positions to the Penang PH leadership council.
Chow was responding to a suggestion by DAP adviser and former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng that a state DAP internal meeting be convened to clarify whether there were indeed objections to PH’s cooperation with Umno, amid claims that some party members opposed the arrangement.
According to Chow, the Penang PH leadership council, which he chairs, had considered the positions presented by the respective party leaders before reaching the decision.
“This is a decision made by the Penang Pakatan Harapan leadership council, which I chair. Each party — Amanah, PKR and DAP — had held its respective meeting before presenting its position on maintaining PH-Barisan Nasional cooperation in Penang,” he said when approached by reporters during his Jelajah CM Chow programme at Seberang Jaya Market today.
Chow stressed that the decision was not made unilaterally, but was based on the collective position of the parties within PH.
He said the respective party chairmen who attended the Penang PH leadership council meeting had expressed a united position on the matter.
“I believe each party chairman who attended was representing their respective party. Therefore, there is no issue regarding the decision. This is the position of the respective parties, and it was endorsed by the Penang PH leadership council,” he said.
Chow said he was not part of the state DAP internal meeting, but had received the party’s position from state DAP chairman Steven Sim.
He said Sim’s position was consistent with those conveyed by Penang Amanah chairman Muhammad Faiz Fadzil and Penang PKR chairman Datuk Dr Mohamad Abdul Hamid, who is also Penang Deputy Chief Minister I.
“They expressed the same, united position, and the state PH leadership made that decision,” he said.