MCA has chided the Penang government for selling land just to make its accounts look nice.

The party's young professional bureau chief Chua Tee Yong based this on the third quarter of the Auditor General Report which stated that Penang's main income last year was derived from land sales which earned the state a RM200 million profit.

"These beautified figures do not bring any benefits to the rakyat and neither are they practical," he said in a statement, adding that generating earnings from land sales is not a long-term method to earn income.

penang house properties 301113 02 Chua said a government that relies on this is one that does not know how to draft a plan for long term economic growth, or how to promote economic growth or enhance income liquidity for the rakyat.

"DAP always say that they are performing better that BN but is this the best they can do?" queried the Labis MP.

He added the state should be practical to attract more investors. It should create a long term development blueprint to form a safety net for the social and economic development in the state, while allowing the masses to obtain benefits from economic growth.

303 percent increase

The Auditor General's Report also pointed out that the Penang state government had earned RM51.09 million more than it did in 2011, with a profit of RM261 million from selling land - an increase of 303 percent.

Bayan Mutiara occupies a big portion of the profit from the land sales which had reached RM101 million.

"Land mass in Penang is limited. The trading of land here will definitely cause prices to increase. Hence, housing prices will fly up as well.

"This will only harm the rights of Penangites, as they need to bear the hike in prices for land and houses," Chua stressed.

He added in the long term, this would result in the state government being richer but the people poorer.

penang house properties 301113 01 "This is because state government earns its income from selling land but the people grow poorer as they need to pay higher prices to own homes.

"The state has the responsibility to offer affordable housing to the people, but the home ownership problem in Penang is getting more and more serious.

"There are a lot of public complaints, with allegations that the developers claim they had enhanced packages to increase prices. This has created grievances," he stressed.

Chua said it was not necessary for the state government to sell the land as it could cooperate with developers.

As long as there is proper development, the state government can enjoy the profits from the commercial activities, Chua said.

"The most important thing is, the government still possesses the land titles and can allocate land to build more affordable homes for the rakyat."