The ball is now in BN’s court to explain why it did not act on illegal factories during its rule in Penang prior to 2008.
After apologising for the matter yesterday, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng urged the previous Gerakan-led government to state their position on the matter as the illegal businesses and premises started operating under their administration.
“If they oppose the state’s policy on this issue, and eagerly want the illegal structures or businesses to be demolished and banned, are they fully prepared to be responsible for the negative social impact and implication on thousands of cases which have yet to be resolved?” Lim asked at a press conference today.
“We need to ask BN, why didn’t they act on these illegal cases during their administration prior to 2008?”
Lim said this after announcing that state executive councillor Phee Boon Poh has been granted leave until Aug 21 to recover from his ordeal during his detention by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
He said the state executive council approved the one-week leave applied by Phee, who is exco for environment, caring society and welfare.
“When he returns, he will explain the issue of his detention by the MACC over the illegal factory case in Sungai Lembu, Bukit Mertajam, which has been operating there for more than 10 years,” said the DAP secretary-general.
“The factory is located one kilometre away from the residential homes, which is beyond the buffer zone for heavy industries, which is 500 metres,” Lim noted.
Phee, who is Sungai Puyu assemblyperson, was arrested last Friday, for issuing letters to the Seberang Perai Municipal Council (MPSP) to halt action against the factory until a win-win solution is found.
The factory's 37-year-old director and his 70-year-old father, who is the manager, were also arrested.
Their five-day remand order was overturned by the Penang High Court on Monday.
Lim said Phee was merely doing his job and implementing state policy on illegal structures, hawkers and places of worship, which was a "BN legacy".
When it took over the state in 2008, the administration decided not to act immediately, without a proper solution, on these cases which were inherited from the previous BN government.
However, following Phee’s arrest, Lim said the state was awaiting clarification from MACC regarding the matter.
“If MACC feels that this policy is not right and is against the law, the Penang government will act on the thousands of illegal cases, but until then, we will maintain our state policy on the issue.
“We want to resolve the issue in an amicable and humane manner, so the cleansing process will involve the relocation of the premises or businesses to another spot, or getting the factory to demolish the illegal structures or stop their illegal businesses themselves,” he said.
“I regret that the issue has been manipulated by BN and PAS.”
In an immediate response to Lim, state BN chief Teng Chang Yeow said the current administration is shirking its responsibility by pushing it to BN which has no power now to decide.
"However, we will know how to decide and what is best for the people, if we are the government of the day," Teng said in a statement.
"What is the current policy after nine years in governance? "asked the state Gerakan chairperson.
"The state government claimed that they took the decision not to demolish any illegal structure, building or factory that existed pre-2008 while looking for a workable solution," he noted.
"But nine years had passed, but they are still working on a workable solution," Teng added. - Mkini
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