Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said today he was trying to set up a meeting with Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nor Mohamed Yakcop this weekend to discuss how both the federal and state governments could work together to complete delayed Penang projects on schedule.

NONE "We will discuss to see whether both governments can work together to make sure all these projects are completed as planned," he told reporters here.

Lim was commenting on Nor Mohamed's statement last Saturday that the federal government would ensure that 22 delayed Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) infrastructure projects worth RM300 million in Penang were completed as scheduled by the end of 2010.

Lim also said that the state government would want to know why only RM1.8 billion of the RM7.6 billion worth of development projects approved for Penang were to be completed on time next year, adding that the rate of failure was about 76 per cent.

Gerakan makes ‘baseless allegation’

On another matter, Lim dismissed as untrue a claim by Gerakan vice-president Dr Teng Hock Nan that lack of cooperation on the part of the state government was the reason for the delay in the construction of the second Penang bridge.

"I hope Gerakan would not make such a baseless allegation against the state government, and they should not play politics with the state's mega-projects," he said.

Lim said the state government was fully committed towards having the bridge completed on time.

The second bridge, linking Batu Maung on the island to Batu Kawan on the mainland, is expected to be completed in May 2012.

- Bernama