HERITAGE conservation in George Town received a boon last week when the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) announced that it may give approval within a day for heritage building owners to repair and conserve their premises if their paperwork is in order. State exco member Chow Kon Yeow said: “Currently, it can take up to six months for the council to reach a decision. We want to expedite things.” Read here.

He also warned that the council would seek immediate legal redress if owners ignored its stop work orders for carrying out work which did not comply with council by-laws and heritage guidelines. A newly-formed MPPP heritage enforcement task force, picked from various departments in MPPP, is on the ground daily including weekends to make sure that they comply with the notices. Read here.

In related news, a “Heritage Clinic” jointly run by the World Heritage Office (WHO), MPPP and Malaysian Institute of Architects (Northern Chapter) was launched in George Town on March 6 as part of the state’s efforts to conserve and promote the heritage site. Read here

Local elections

On the request by Penang state government for local elections to be initiated, CM Lim Guan Eng commented that the ball is now in the Election Commission's court to make a decision on the third vote. “The federal government doesn’t seem keen on having it so this will be a real test of independence for the Elections Commission... I hope the commission will have a discussion with us before deciding on the matter.” Read here.

He also hoped to meet with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's to explain why the state government wants to restore local government elections. Read here. Commenting on the PM’s statement that local council elections wasn’t necessary, Lim stated that he disagreed with the PM and that “the elections will help strengthen the democratic process from the grassroots level upwards.”  Read here.

In an opinion piece written in theSun, the writer clarifies that in an advocacy paper prepared by the Coalition for Good Governance (CGG) and commissioned by the Selangor government has argued that the legal mechanism for local elections has merely been suspended and not removed. The Local Government Elections Act 1960 (LGEA) has never been repealed; it continues to exist after being amended a few times. Read here.

Other news

• CP Group plans more projects in Penang: A five-star hotel, a convention centre, a hospital and high-end condominiums are among the projects lined up by the CP Group for its Queensbay site. Read here 
• PMCC chief: 'Unite for sake of Penang Malays': Newly re-elected Penang Malay Chamber of Commerce (PMCC) president Rizal Faris Mohideen wants all PMCC members, especially those who contested in the election during the annual general meeting on Thursday, to let bygones be bygones and stand united for the sake of the Malays in Penang. Read here 
• Government allocates RM14.4 million to upgrade parks, gardens in Penang: The federal government has allocated RM14.4 million to upgrade parks and gardens in Penang to attract tourists. Read here
• Bumiputra contractors got 100% of projects: Under the state government’s open tender system, Penang bumiputra contractors have secured 100 per cent of the projects carried out by the state Public Works (PWD) and the Drainage and Irrigation (DID) departments. Read here
• Penang economy resilient despite slower inflow of investments: Penang expects inflow of investment to be slow this year as companies recover from the global financial crisis but the manufacturing and services sectors are expected to be resilient. Read here

For more news on Penang from March 8 to 14, 2010 , please click here.

Comments (0)

Show/Hide comments

Show/Hide comment form