Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has come under criticism after the state government he leads purchased a new Mercedes-Benz that cost nearly RM500,000 for his use.
Two youth leaders, including former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman, described the expenditure as unnecessary, especially at this juncture when the rakyat is struggling with the economic impact of Covid-19.
"There is no need to buy a luxury car using the rakyat's money when hundreds of thousands are losing their jobs during this Covid-19 pandemic, while tens of thousands are affected badly by flood," Syed Saddiq posted on Facebook yesterday.
He also compared the incident with the Kelantan state government purchasing a new Mercedes-Benz last year to be Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob's official car.
The PAS-led state administration purchased the Mercedes S450 L AMG, with ''DV 1'' registration number plate, allegedly priced above RM600,000.
"We must be fair! Back then, the Kelantan PAS leadership was criticised because they got a new Mercedes and a 'backdated' salary increase during Covid-19.
"This is the same. Please... This is not the time to be luxurious. This is the time to give full attention to the rakyat," said the founder of the Malaysia United Democratic Alliance (Muda).
It was reported yesterday that the DAP-led Penang state government has given Chow a new official car, a Mercedes S560e, to replace the previous Mercedes S300L bought in 2013.
Bernama quoted the office of the Penang state secretary, which said that the new car was bought on Dec 31, 2020 for RM458,122.78, after a discount of RM127,765.22.
Another youth leader, Nazhan Zulkifli, also shared similar sentiments with Syed Saddiq.
In a statement, the Terengganu PKR Youth chief said such action would make the people sick of politicians.
"We do not want to be an opposition that only knows to attack the other side, but at the end of the day, we do things just like them.
"This is akin to a crab trying to teach its offspring how to walk straight," he said.
"The Penang chief minister should apologise to the rakyat," Nazhan added.
For the record, PKR and Muda are both in the opposition at the federal level, together with DAP. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.