Story by Chan Lilian
ASSEMBLY sittings can be boring and mundane to most.
The recently concluded Penang State Assembly sitting went without much drama.
Previously, demos would spice up the scene and give members of the media an adrenaline rush in between the routine.
The sitting began with the tabling of the 2016 budget for Penang.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had explained the surplus budget but the mainstream media continued to publish “deficit” in their headlines.
“Penang recorded annual surpluses every year and our accumulated surpluses during the last seven years from 2008-2014 amounting to RM503 million exceeded the RM373 million accumulated over 50 years from 1957-2007. At the same time our debt has been reduced by 90% since 2008,” Lim said.
However, the last day of the sitting ended with a heated debate.
A motion by Umno’s Pulau Betong assemblymember Sr. Muhamad Farid Saad was described as “BN’s sneaky, devious entrapment motion”.
“I have exposed the charade and entrapment by Umno on this issue. The decision on the land reclamation was approved by the same party when one of them was holding office as an exco member in the previous administration. It is a clear case of double standards. What type of principle is this? He did not apologise and yet he dares to deny he played a role,” Lim said.
“The motion is not necessary as the current law states that new land reclamation requires the Detailed Environment Impact Assessment (DEIA) report. However, the assemblymember wants to be holier than thou and be a hero now. I asked him to man-up, admit that the one who approved the land reclamation was his party. Clearly, the motion was trying to trap us. We refuse to fall into their trap,” Lim said.
Tanjung Bungah assemblymember Teh Yee Cheu had apologised and admitted he made a mistake by voting for the motion.
Lim said DAP will give him a cooling off period since he had apologised and admitted his mistake.
Any further action to be taken will be decided at a later date.
As for the five PKR assemblymembers who abstained from voting, Lim said he will leave it to their party to handle.
Lim also revealed that a land search showed that 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) had purchased three parcels of land measuring only 23.47 acres.
What is more shocking is the fact that 1MDB only owned a fraction of the land which is 1/4 share for two pieces and 11/100 share for another.
“Why buy the land without 100% equity? This totally contradicts 1MDB’s announcement that they purchased 234 acres of land at RM1.08 billion. Paid RM1.08b for land in which they do not have 100% equity? That is totally out of their mind! Why RM1.08 billon drifted away just like that?” Lim questioned.
The Penang state government through the Land and Mines Office (PTG) had written to the president and executive director of 1MDB, Arul Kanda Kandasamy, on July 13 to obtain further information.
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