Problems in Penang

ARCHIVES 2009

By admin-s On Jul 27, 2009

(The Nut Graph) THE Pakatan Rakyat (PR) has been busy fire-fighting, no less in Penang.

The PR state government in this northern state recently came under fire from Kampung Buah Pala villagers over their impending eviction. The villagers are aided by sympathisers, including the influential Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), and the state government's image has no doubt suffered a battering.

But even before this, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's administration provided detractors plenty of fodder to speculate that PR would unravel. The resignation of Deputy Chief Minister 1 Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin and the subsequent Penanti by-election to find his replacement was informative of the political tension within the state.

Based on news reports, Lim doesn't appear to have his team's full cooperation. And the problems somehow consistently appear to come from PKR. There was the boycott of the swearing-in ceremony of the new Seberang Prai Municipal Council president by PKR councillors, for one. And then recently, Lim's chief of staff, Jeff Ooi, lashed out at two PKR Penang Municipal councillors for being inefficient and truant. Lim is said to be trying to depoliticise local councils, but he clearly faces the challenge of having to juggle the interests of other parties in PR.