Penang has become a hive of political activity this weekend.
On Friday, PSM held a 30-table fund-raising dinner in Bayan Baru. PSM secretary general Arutchelvan said whether BN, Pakatan or ‘third force’, what really mattered at the end of the day was ‘people power’. Jeyakumar Devaraj, on the other hand, said it was important to check feudal and pro-corporate elements from creeping into Pakatan. See Malaysiakini report PSM welcomes third force to kick BN out.
Last night, over 1,000 people attended a Pakatan ceramah in Balik Pulau. The Penang State Assembly Speaker said the state government would hand out RM100 to single mothers and disabled persons next year if they register with the local JKKK, said one eye-witness at the scene. (I hope this won’t be tied to voter registration lists.)
Questions were raised by the public about missing ceramics and other artefacts at the Bujang Valley archeological site in Kedah during a ‘Penang Story’ talk yesterday evening.
This is serious as the Bujang Valley is a national treasure. As one of the earliest, if not the earliest, civilisations in the region, the site could potentially become a source of much knowledge about the region besides becoming a major draw for visitors.
The talk yesterday was presented by Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Centre for Global Archaeological Research director Associate Professor Dr Mokhtar Saidi, who leads the archeological dig that has discovered monuments dating back to the first century AD at the sprawling site in the northern region.
Gamuda-MMC has received an early ‘durian runtuh’ with the government reportedly granting preliminary approval for the consortium to manage a RM36 billion mass rapid transit (MRT) project for the Klang Valley.
See a report by Reuters here.
Because of the large amount of public money at stake, the government must tell us exactly how the tender process for the consortium’s reportedly ‘unsolicited proposal’ was carried out. Is it true that there was only one contractor with whom the government negotiated? That in itself is disturbing.
The actual project is expected to cost RM36 billion. Add land acquisition and rolling stock cost and the tab reportedly could come up to a jaw-dropping RM43 billion. (What about possible cost overruns?) That makes it the largest construction job under the Tenth Malaysia Plan.
Examine carefully the major shareholders of Gamuda Bhd as at 15 October 2009:
It looks like the status quota – or even an entrenchment – in the system of rewarding party faithful with appointments to the two Penang municipal councils.The DAP general election manifesto in 2008 (click image to enlarge): Have they lived up to their campaign pledges in relation to the protection of green spaces and the environment, electoral reforms and local democracy, PICC and transparency, and affordable health care (as opposed to 'health tourism')?
The total quota for “NGOs” in both MPPP and MPSP is reportedly being reduced from 10 councillors in 2008 to seven for 2011. Bear in mind, the state’s definition of ‘NGOs’ includes groups with vested business interests. As for the representation of public interest (civil society) groups, the word that comes to mind is tokenism.
Pending the restoration of local council elections, public interest groups had asked for five reps in each council. Under the banner of Penang Forum, they had conducted open elections to choose their nominees in a bid to broaden their selection process and make it more transparent.
The state government is pushing ahead with the controversial Penang International Convention Centre. Now who is going to be the lucky developer and main contractor?
See a Sin Chew report here.
In the interest of transparency, FOI etc and as public money is involved, the state government must provide us with the full details of the project, the full cost, the cost to the state/public, and the tender details. The full project value under the Build-Operate-Transfer scheme (see my earlier blog post – PICC and the risks of BOT) may end up much more than the RM50 million subsidy figure mentioned earlier (although the state had budgeted RM50 million for its share of the cost). And if the BOT financial projections fail to materialise, guess who could end up subsidising the PICC even further?
Politicians just love these big projects whose worth to the ordinary person on the street is, at best, questionable. But who profits the most? Probably the developers or contractors. And at whose expense? Of course, the politicians will try and convince us otherwise.
The by-election expected to be called in Tenang, Johor, following the passing of an Umno state assembly member, will be the 14th since 8 March 2008.
Thus far, the score reads 8-5 in Pakatan’s favour, but the last few results have gone BN’s way.
So four MPs – Anwar, Azmin, Karpal and Sivarasa – have been suspended from Parliament for six months.
That leaves them with plenty of free time for campaigning! Obviously, the Apco issue has struck a raw nerve somewhere. Apco was supposed to help the government’s public relations but instead the firm itself has become the object of scrutiny and hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Thanks to these highly undemocratic suspensions, a large number of Malaysians will not be looking kindly at the firm – or the government. What a public relations disaster and a serious blow for democracy!
Confused about the present state of the 222-seat Parliament?
BN parties
Farewell to the arches. Now, we are going to see a Lotus Square in the Penang Botanic Garden that would be more in tune with the garden.
I just wonder who will absorb the cost of constructing those monstrous arches and then demolishing them. Who finally foots the bill: those responsible for approving the arches, the contractor or the public?
No thanks to those responsible for approving all the other ‘upgrading’ projects earlier, we will now have more concrete structures invading the greens: a so-called visitors’ centre with auditorium (an auditorium???), retail outlets and more car parks…. sheesh!
It’s going to be tough to undo the mess at the Garden. Unfortunately, we had to spoil a priceless treasure that was handed down to us intact for over a hundred years since its establishment in 1884. And the worst part is that we called that ‘development’ and ‘upgrading’.
While the MPPP are going through the motions of taking legal action against those responsible for the sudden demolition of 20 Pykett Avenue, it appears to be also going through the motions of processing the development plans for the area.
From what I hear, the MPPP has not (yet) approved any development plans. Meanwhile, though, take a look at this: the MPPP is now calling for neighbours’ objections to the plans.
Defence Minister Zahid Hamidi, in announcing hefty pay increases for the armed forces, made a claim that the Constitution stated that salaries in the armed forces should be higher than in any other government service.
See the NST report here.
I asked a couple of experienced lawyers about this reference to the Constitution and they said they were not aware of such a provision. I looked up the Constitution and I couldn’t spot the provision either. Can anyone point me to the specific provision in the Constitution to that effect?
Meanwhile Najib was reported (in The Starhere) as saying that it is impossible for the Opposition to take over the Barisan Nasional’s role in leading the country. “From the days of the Alliance until the Barisan leadership, we have proven that we keep to our promises…. Barisan brought the nation independence and we will be the one to steer the nation to be a highly-developed one.”
Actually, who wants to emulate the BN, which has driven this country into the ground slowly but surely?
Let’s compare the human development record of South Korea and Malaysia from 1970 until now.
The race is on to grab Penang Port Sdn Bhd from public ownership as the spotlight falls on private corporations expressing interest. But is serious consideration being given to the Penang state government’s interest in taking over the port?
At first it was reportedly just Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary and parties close to him. Now, the Edge reports that another consortium has entered the picture: Oriental Pearl Harbour Sdn Bhd.
Oriental Pearl Harbour has apparently submitted a preliminary proposal to the federal government. Its directors are Rosli Abdul Latif and Mohd Ramli Abu Bakar, a former Navy chief. No information on shareholders or accounts is available as the company was only registered this month.
The latest Edge makes no mention of the Penang state government’s interest in taking over the port.
PKR deputy president Azmin Ali has made a pledge to the people of Sarawak that could change the dynamics of the local political situation in the run-up to the next state election.
What is his pledge? Go here.
There, it didn’t take long for the RM16 million ‘toy’ monorail in Malacca to grind to a screeching halt. Penang, which is still grappling with the idea of rail transit, can learn from Malacca’s costly experiment with monorail.
Embarrassingly, a skylift had to be used to rescue 20 stranded passengers from a monorail coach, just 100 metres from the station. The launch of the monorail had been timed to mark Malacca’s recognition as a ‘developed state’.
There’s some poetic justice in there somewhere, especially when you consider the unequal heritage conservation funding allocations for the two historical cities. Malacca monorail by night as seen from a boat cruising along the Malacca River
So what’s going to happen to the RM13 million extension plan under phase two of the Malacca monorail?
I couldn’t help feeling a sense of loss over Fan Yew Teng’s passing. He was one of a kind, a freedom fighter with a strong passion for justice, tempered with a hearty laugh and a friendly disposition.
He was a politician but a principled one – which may explain why he never struck fame or fortune. He may have quit his party, started a new party and then left formal politics – not because he was a katak or for personal gain. As always with Fan, it was on a matter of principle, a matter of conscience.
After his departure from politics, he led a fairly secluded lifestyle. But he never truly left the scene. Every now and then, he would send articles to Aliran, which the social reform group happily carried in its publication, Aliran Monthly.
The federal government’s double standards in the allocation of funding for conservation and revitalisation projects in Penang and Malacca are disturbing. Malacca receives RM30 million while Penang gets only RM20 million.
First, the disparity in the amounts given is hard to understand, given that Penang has the largest collection of pre-war shop-houses in the region. Unless the reason is political – you know, Malacca comes under BN and Penang under Pakatan.
Second, the RM20 million for Penang doesn’t go to the state government but to Think City. Now, Think City is a wholly owned special purpose vehicle established by Khazanah Nasional Berhad (under the Finance Ministry) to implement and manage a so-called ‘George Town Grants Programme’.
View ThinkCity Physical Projects Map Round 1 & 2 in a larger map
The Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) is set to take action against the preemptive demolition of a building at 20 Pykett Avenue, the site of a large property development project. But will such action be enough of a deterrence in the future?
The building, though not gazetted as a heritage structure, was demolished without prior planning permission, prompting the Council to take legal action under the Town and Country Planning Act 1976. The MPPP is in the process of seeking a judgement and penalties including applying for a mandatory order to take appropriate future action.
Some comic relief in the midst of the political uproar of late.
This one’s not a red-shirt protest but a red flag demo. Coming face-to-face with a phalanx of riot police is not for the faint-hearted:
You got to say, that woman bearing the red flag did not flinch – she just looked up at her flag, grit her teeth and gave the ‘other side’ a glare.
Here in Penang, we had our own dose of ‘black’ humour, courtesy of a few jokers. Somehow, I don’t foresee many scrambling to try this latest Penang ‘delicacy’.
Have a look at this latest ruckus in Parliament as Opposition MPs tried to put forward a motion.
They had wanted to question the intention of the parliamentary rights and privileges committee’s decision to censure Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim over his allegations regarding Apco without calling for his defence.
Judge for yourselves the behaviour and antics of certain MPs. Notice how the BN MPs badger the Speaker to take action.
The Penang state government should be supported in its bid to acquire Penang Port, currently under the Finance Minister, after news emerged of plans to privatise Penang Port Sdn Bhd.
The state government has written to the PM to express interest in entering discussions to buy the port.
theSun reported the Penang Chief Minister as saying:
