Whether is he sincere or not?

It is ever sickening to read in newspaper on various delays of Penang's important development projects. I can't help but wonder, Chief Minister Lim is truthfully sincere in bringing betterment for the Penangites. Instead of try to implement those project skillfully, he seem, to me, more enthuastic in creating causes for delay.

As in today Star, he seem to be indulge in delaying the Penang's Monorail project, firstly he want the monorail to be scrapped and replaced by a underground rail system, which eventually get rebuffed for excessive cost concern, now he is proposing to overhaul the monorail's network to cover Seberang Prai area, citing mainland resident should enjoy the spill over effect of the state development.

“It will not be fair for the people on the mainland if they don’t get the spillover effects of the development implemented in the state. They too should enjoy the monorail project. We want to ensure everyone benefited from this, not just the islanders,” he is reported to be said.

But do he realised that, by bringing the monorail's project back to drawing board, it is as good as scrapping it because, later on, the cost of project will escalated to a point the Federal government will not be able to fund it anymore.
Could it be that certain parties are not happy with the members of monorail consortium?

In the same newspaper report, he is having a different tone, as compare to the time of election campaign, on the issue of of job opportunities.

“Workers who were retrenched were being absorbed into other factories that required skilled workers,” he said. “It is not right to say the manufacturing sector is facing a hard time based on a few retrenchment cases.”

“The fact that many jobs were being advertised in the newspapers reflected that the economic situation was good,” he said.

Why are he and blogger Jeff restlessly attacking Koh Tsu Koon on the same issue during the GE12 campaign, and yet now he is sound so BN-rish?

Another example of public fund wastage

Not another deputy CM, please.

The Star had reported on 12/3/08 that, Lim Guan Eng is introducing another extra DCM post for his coalition state government. It used to has a DCM for the UMNO after the 1990 DAP onslaught on Gerakan/MCA. Now in 2008, DAP, in power, create another DCM just for the sake of appeasing the Indian minority. Let me just say that, Penang is not a big state, we actually don't need any DCM. With these 'white-elephant' positions, it means the state need to cough out more money for their allowances, lavish cars and other expenditure.

Now, there is a problem here. Guan Eng just scrapped those summonses yesterday and today he is announcing extra expenditure, second day into the government, the state financial situation already run into deficits. While Dato' Seri Anwar is urging the ruling opposition to be prudent, we see people spending state's coffer like his grandfather money here in Penang.

Here is the Star reporting,

Wednesday March 12, 2008
MYT 12:18:02 PM

Two deputy CMs for Penang

PENANG: Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has announced the appointment of two Deputy Chief Ministers for the state.

They are the Prai assemblyman from DAP, Prof. P. Ramasamy, and Penanti assemblyman from PKR, Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin.

Lim has not yet named the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the state assembly, but said the two posts would be filled by representatives from PKR.

DAP Penang first governance policy

Scrap those summonses!
This is the way Penang newly elected government gratifying it people for bringing them into the power.

Hours after Lim Guan Eng sworn in as the forth Penang CM of 11/3/08, he announced his first 'people friendly' governance policy that is to scrapped all local government summonses pertaining to hawker license and public parking. On first glimpse, it is indeed a good news, but on second thought if the new government has this kind of mentality, it will disastrous for the state. First of all, although this is those monies not collected, as according to Guan Eng, but still the money eventually collected belong to the people. It can be used to upgrade the living conditions of many Penangites around the island and on mainland. Without consultations to the rakyat, he just made a proposal that going to make state coffer poorer, but gain political mileage for himself.

I call this mis-appropriation of public funds.

Such ruling will also inculcate a negative mentality on the rakyat, in future the rakyat will simply be indifferent to the many laws in the state, thinking that the government will waived it eventually to gain popularity. Can you imagine the chaotic consequences?

I think DAP has to take heeds that, now you are in the government, scrutinise yourselves with the highest standard of transparency and good public governance.

On a side-note, look at the picture above, why is Lim Kit Siang, not an office bearer in the state and not an elected representative in the state, can seated in the front row together with Koh Tsu Koon? Is this a new state protocol to have the father of the CM ranked among the state VVIP?