TTF: Lim Guan Eng is spinning yet another yarn. In a 1st of August 2017 posting, Rahman Dahlan accused the DAP Penang Government of lying about the state’s debt reduction being the result of CAT efforts. The minister also accused the DAP of lying that the Federal Government had not assisted the Penang government financially.
Guan Eng’s admission today (read news report below) proves what Dahlan said, that the DAP-led government had been lying to voters all along. Following the admission, Guan Eng goes on to pull wool over your eyes by accusing Rahman of “being jealous” of the state’s development. Does that make any practical sense to you? Can you now see how Guan Eng spins?
GEORGE TOWN: Lim Guan Eng yesterday confirmed that Penang’s debt reduction was due to the Federal government but called Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan “childish” for being jealous of the state’s success to have zero outstanding debt payment arrears.
In a tit-for-tat, the Penang Chief Minister said the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department was attempting to claim credit that the Federal government was responsible for the reduction in Penang’s debts.
On Tuesday, Rahman told the Penang government to be honest to itself and cancel the water restructuring deal with the Federal government if it still wanted to claim credit for the state’s debt reduction.
The Barisan Nasional strategic comunications director had said that 95 per cent of the debt reduction was made possible by the Federal government in a water restructuring agreement in 2011, when the Federal government agreed to convert RM655.24 million in water debt to 45 annual lease payments of RM14.56 million by the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP).
He had also said that in the same agreement, the Federal government had also agreed to give RM1.2 billion grant to the state government to expand the Mengkuang Dam, with a “big proportion” of the funds had been disbursed to the state government.
Blogger Lim Sian See said Lim’s answers to Rahman “essentially confirms beyond any doubt that the state debt was reduced by the Federal government.”
Sian See said unlike Penang, other states does not boast about the debt reduction due to Federal government water deals, citing Perak as an example, which ac
tually reduced their state debt by 99 per cent but does not claim credit.
“Also, I noticed the chief minister was silent on the RM1.2 billion grant give as part of the same 2011 agreement. Why so shy to mention?
“If this 2011 agreement is cancelled, then Penang’s state debt would not be reduced by 95 per cent but will triple as they have to take back the 95 per cent debt worth RM655 million as well as pay back RM1.2 billion in free grants given by Federal government.
“At the end of the day, the chief minister chickened out from the challenge to cancel the 2011 agreement and decided to give strange answers,” Sian See said in a posting on his official Facebook page.
In response to Rahman Lim had said he state government and PBAPP had no help from the Federal government when all debt repayments were made on time adding Rahman should not have behaved childishly.
“Will the Federal government then cancel all the water restructuring deals for all states; return the water assets taken by the Federal government back to the states; as well as push through a constitutional amendment now approved by the Federal Parliament and all state assemblies to undo the 2005 Federal Constitutional amendment and return back the power of ‘water supplies and services’ back to the State List?”Lim said.
Source: NST Online
