another BN man working for penang DAP-led govt

(gotta blog now in office – after office hours lah – as scared i go home, my PC still not working).

first it was the secretary-general of gerakan, lee kah choon who quit his post  and became just an ordinary member – he was offered by penang CM, lim guan eng, to be the chairman of penang development corporation and investpenang.

then now, we hear of the secretary of penang umno, khalid ahmad, accepting the post of deputy chairman of the penang appeals board.

from malaysian insider:

PENANG, April 22 — Umno veteran Tan Sri Khalid Ahmad has agreed to join the Penang Appeals Board after an offer from the DAP-led Penang Government, making him the second Barisan Nasional man to cross the divide.

Sources told The Malaysian Insider that Khalid will be deputy chairman of the board, which hears appeals on town planning in the state.

"(Chief Minister) Lim Guan Eng is very persuasive in getting their cooperation," a source close to Lim told The Malaysian Insider.

Gerakan’s Lee Kah Choon was the first to accept Lim’s offer to be a director of the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) and InvestPenang.

Khalid, who is Penang BN secretary, was under great pressure to decline the offer but decided accepting it was for the greater good, another source said.

The appeals board, normally headed by an ex-judge, is a body with wide powers to adjudicate land and town planning disputes. It is now headed by retired judge Ho Mui Ching, who was appointed in 1997.

hmm… that is good news indeed. at least to me, a penangite. that should be the way. even the opposition (BN is now the opposition in penang) should work together in close cooperation with the government for the common good of the public. however, that is not how BN sees it, i see, especially from the big mouth siao ah pek, former gerakan president, who as usual in his siao talk said that DAP lack local talents, that’s why had to recruit lee kah choon. he also sarcastically wish good luck to lee, which to one malaysiakini letter writer, only served to show that keng yaik (like the others BN people) is a sore loser.

this keng yaik ah he always talk big one you know. for example before the election, look at how he talked, criticising the barisan alternative and all that but then when election over, and BN lost heavily, he pulak criticised BN. siao!!

the latest news we hear now is that lee kah choon had decided to quit gerakan, after heavy criticisms from BN.

Former Gerakan deputy secretary-general Lee Kah Choon has submitted a letter to withdraw his party membership and hopes that this will put an end to the controversy surrounding him.

In an one-page statement today, Lee reiterated that his objective is clear and consistent throughout his political career, which is to serve the people.

The former member of Parliament for Jelutong had resigned from all party posts after Gerakan’s annihilation in Penang at the hands of the opposition in the March 8 general election.

However, controversy arose when he accepted the director post in the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) and InvestPenang on Monday in an announcement made by the state Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Criticisms poured in from several quarters including Barisan Nasional chairperson Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who said Lee’s decision was "against the spirit of BN."

Former Gerakan president Dr Lim Keng Yaik also offered his "pity" because Lee will have to face distrust from the party and DAP.

Also, Gerakan Wanita head Tan Lian Hoe opined that he should resign and that the party would not break up if Lee’s membership was withdrawn.

Yesterday evening, Gerakan acting president Dr Koh Tsu Koon issued a show-cause letter asking him to explain why no action should be taken against him for taking up the opposition job offer.

‘My record speaks for itself’

In refusing to answer the letter, Lee explained that his decision to work for the Penang state government was motivated by the island’s interest which cannot be compromised by any political consideration.

"In the next quarter, the projected economic slowdown is going to affect out export oriented economic performance.

"I believe the focus on job creation and measures to ensure sustainable growth is more important than continuous politicking," he said.

"Since my decision is not acceptable to the Gerakan leadership, I believe it is best for me to retreat totally from party politics.

"This way, I hope we can put the matter to rest and move forward with some serious tasks at hand," he added.

He also rebutted criticisms from Koh who said the former only has experience as a lawyer and a parliamentary secretary with the Health Ministry – both unrelated to investment in the industrial sector.

"Criticism on my lack of experience is inaccurate and my professional and service record speaks for itself. If any, the criticism drives me to achieve more for Penang," he said.

"With the political ghost exorcised, I now look forward to work will all parties to ensure Penang leads again," he added.

Lee, 48, who joined Gerakan in 1987, defeated DAP’s Karpal Singh for the Jelutong parliamentary seat in 1999 and retained the seat in 2004.

In the March 8 polls, he was also speculated to succeed Koh as chief minister alongside party vice-president Dr Teng Hock Nan and Tanjung division chief Teng Chang Yeow.

However, he lost the Machang Bubok state seat to PKR’s Tan Hock Leong. Gerakan also lost Penang when DAP clinched 19 of the 40 state seats and became the earliest state known to have fallen into opposition hands.

funny. why PM said lee’s decision (while still a gerakan member)  to take up the post of chairman of PDC was against the BN’s spirit and yet at another time he said they (BN) are mulling on the matter of cooperation with the opposition.

ok coming back to this issue of penang umno secretary, khalid ahmad’s appointment. i’m glad to see an umno member accepting the post. it’s good to have one in the land appeal board since there is a possibility of the penang government investigating land cheat scams by previous government, which also involved the former DPM, and umno man.

btw, i remember reading somewhere, some other umno member… was it the sungai acheh assemblyman or who… forgot was offered some position too but he declined saying that lim guan eng had an ulterior motive in offering him the post. ha!! indeed!! think he is too muka tebal (or still sore loser… how long will they remain sore loser?) to want to accept… or simply one of the reason umno lost heavily in the election – ARROGANT! too arrogant not to want to accept. oh well ok if he didn’t want to accept but why suspect LGE of ulterior motive if not for being arrogant… just like keng yaik.

(ok though i love to write more… i can’t as i have to leave the office now. hopefully my home PC is ok!)

UPDATED 24-4 0150 HRS

my house PC still not working. am surfing to read blogs via my PDA again and now writing this. so still can’t blog at my usual blogging time of over midnight.