Lim Guan Eng, as the Chief Minister of Penang, should really start moving forward and show what he is capable of as a state leader, not as an opposition leader.
No point wasting too much time digging old fault of the previous government; the Penang folks knew how corrupted the previous government was… they might not know the details, but they were suspecting something huge.
Or else, does DAP think that they won the state in March because Penangties love them that much? People voted for Pakatan because they no longer have fate with BN, and Pakatan was their only option for making a change… and a change is what LGE and his state exco need to do.
What the people want to see is better governance and better quality of living… and digging old fault doesn’t help. What LGE needs to do is to be clean and transparent, improve infrastructures, create job opportunities and reduce cost of living.
The BN central government probably won’t help much to build the state… it won’t be easy for LGE obviously. But that’s what a political leader should do, to overcome difficulties and to find solutions… or else any Ah Beng could have become Chief Minister if it’s an easy job.
As credit due, LGE didn’t perform badly during his tenure for the last few months… but it certainly hasn’t been great yet. Show us what you got Lim Guan Eng, as a true leader, a government leader, and not just an opposition leader. Time to move forward.
The Selangor PAS Youth will ask the state government to meet with the relevant departments and state-owned companies to discuss the types of entertainment programmes which should be allowed in the state. Its chief Sallehen Mokhyi said the meetings would help the state government ensure that only activities which focused on the healthy development of youths would be allowed. [Thestar]
Seems like the PAS Youth have learned nothing after being slammed by the Sultan for their protest against rock queen Ella and dangdut singer Mas Idayu performing at the Sultan of Selangor Cup football match.
Frankly, if they can’t even stand the likes of Ella and Mas Idayu, we can kiss goodbye to most of the western artists if their wishes are granted; events like Super GT would probably be scrapped too… but I doubt the state government and royals would pay much attention to their plea at the moment.
It should remind people though, that PAS’ philosophy is not really aligned with PKR and DAP. If Pakatan Rakyat does take over the government by September… do bear in mind that PAS will have to part of the plan.
There are callings that we should not be shallow with PAS’ administration, that their governmental in Kelantan is better than some media is claming… but sometimes, what they are trying to do is plain annoying. They even tried to ban lipstick and high heels in Kota Bahru [Bernama], makes me wonder what they would come out next.
DAP leader and member of Parliament Karpal Singh received a live bullet in an envelope at his law firm in Jalan Pudu Lama yesterday afternoon. [Malaysiakini]
The live bullet was accompanied with a note warning him against speaking out on the controversial issues of Malay rights and the constitutional powers of the Sultans.
Video: Karpal Singh interviewed after lodging a police report at Dang Wangi police station
To be frank, if the person who sent the bullet does want to harm Karpal, he would have use the bullet straight away. Not saying that we should take this death threat lightly though; it’s better to be safe than sorry.
What I really don’t want to see is the whole situation being blown out of proportion… some bloggers are already turning this death threat into a racial issue, but fact is the threat is probably plotted by one single individual and not a whole race.
I wish Karpal well… hopefully it’s just an act of cowardness instead of a serious threat.
DAP secretary-general and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has managed to screw BN again with the Lee Kah Choon saga.
The Lee Kah Choon controversy has probably been put to rest following the former Gerakan deputy secretary-general’s decision to quit the party.
Lee has earlier accepted the posts of director of Penang Development Corporation and chairman of the executive committee of InvestPenang, which was strongly opposed by BN leadership.
PKR, DAP and PAS have agreed to consolidate the cooperation between the three parties and proposed their alliance be called the “Pakatan Rakyat” (People’s Pact).
The first benefit of the pact is that we could now refer to these parties in a single term… it was a pain trying to mention their coalition like the “DAP-PAS-PKR alliances government” etc.
On serious note… it’s a good move to form the pact. The official alliance would hopefully create more understanding between the parties. Issues like the Perak MB joke could be avoided if the coalition was forged before that.
Also, as Anwar mentioned, this coalition would mean that the policies of the Pakatan controlled state governments would be in line with the policies of Pakatan Rakyat, which should be a good thing. However, I wonder how ‘in line’ these states could be… PAS’s Islamic policy would certainly create an obstacle in this matter.
I am not saying that PAS’s policy is bad; I believe Kelantanese are well treated regardless of religion… but it’s obvious that PAS is governing their state differently from the rest of the country. The only probable thing that PKR and DAP are sharing with PAS is the common goal to uphold the rights and interests of all Malaysians.
Just some simple questions… will PAS give up some of their religious based policies in Kelantan if the Pakatan is to be formally formed? Will DAP be happy if PAS want to implement some religious based rules at other states? It’s still a long way to go obviously.
Perhaps we should give the Pakatan Rakyat a bit more time to finalise their plans and ideology. I would like to see them forming a mock cabinet if the coalition goes well; I think they are thinking about that too.
DAP secretary-general and Air Putih state assemblyman Lim Guan Eng was sworn as Penang’s fourth Chief Minister yesterday (March 12, 2008).
Contrary to the possible chaos that Perak is facing, Lim sworn in with relative ease. PKR’s Mohd Fairus Khairuddin and DAP’s P Ramasamy have been appointed as his deputies to “ensure all the communities in Penang are represented and this government is for all”.
Various promises and plans have been announced… some good, some stupid. Talk is always easy though, we’ll see how it actually works out in future for this new government.
On side note, I would give ex-CM Koh Tsu Koon some props for the democratic attitude he showed since the General Election results were known. He has showed that he is a good man, but a good man doesn’t mean that he could be a good politician, or a good Chief Minister.
DAP will boycott the swearing-in event of PAS’s Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin as the new Perak Menteri Besar at Istana Iskandariah, Kuala Kangsar on March 13.
According to Lim Kit Siang, the appointment has caused shock and consternation to DAP leaders, members and supporters; and that the appointment has not received the mandate of DAP Central Executive Committee.
The decision to appoint a PAS MB is not going to be popular among the Chinese, despite the fact that a PAS MB is not equivalent of a PAS state government. I believe the younger generation would have little problem with it, but it’s not an easy task to convince the older generation to ease their prejudice on PAS.
The rumours that PAS is ready to implement Islamic law in Kedah must have raised further concern, and DAP is obviously trying to please the majority Chinese supporters by drawing a line here. It’s irony that most Chinese are hoping for a fair Malaysia for all Malaysians regardless of race and religion, and here they are… being discriminative after all.
The main question is however… why voicing it now DAP? Why NOW?
Like it or not, the whole nation was already anticipating the appointment of Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin for the past few days… if DAP has any problems with it, they should have strongly objected it before the appointment is made. DAP should have made it clear to the Sultan (or Regent) and the public that they would not tolerate a PAS MB… and not like what they did with the whole “all decisions would be respected” hoo-haa.
BN’s arrogance and ignorance has cost them clearly in the election… is DAP falling into the trap so soon? I mean, how stupid or ignorant could DAP be for not anticipating the appointment prior to the official announcement? And exactly how arrogant is DAP to defy the Sultan’s decision and to make such an immature fuss.
At the time of writing, non-BN parties (let’s drop the term ‘opposition’ shall we?) have officially claimed the states of Penang, Kedah and Kelantan. Selangor and Perak are also reported to have won by non-BN alliances, albeit unofficial.
It’s just the beginning though… set aside PAS that has been governing Kelantan for years, DAP and PKR are noobs when it comes to governing a state. I am not saying that they are not capable to do so, it’s however a fact that they are facing a new challenge that they had never faced before… governance.
First thing first, they need to do their best to maintain peace. I don’t think we will have any serious riots or demos following the victories in these states, but we do need to take extra safety precautions to maintain peace.