Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has dismissed claims that he is a “dictator”, and that he decided on his own the sale of a plot of land off Peel Avenue for the expansion of Island Hospital Penang.

Claiming that he does not remember the name of his accuser, Lim said such allegations were “slander and lies” by a state Gerakan leader.

“This person tried to give the impression that Penang is now ruled by a dictator, that decisions now are made by one person, unlike in the past (prior to 2008) when Gerakan ruled the state,” Lim said at a press conference in Komtar.

“He tried to imply that decisions on the sales of land in the past, under Gerakan, were decided by the Land Committee and state executive councillors,” he added.

Lim said currently, the Land Committee comprises three other exco members, and state government officials, other than himself.

“In the past, during Gerakan’s rule, the Land Committee comprised only one person (former deputy chief minister Dr Hilmi Yahaya); and the others were state government officers,” he stressed.

“This proves that the dictator was under Gerakan, prior to 2008, and not the Pakatan Harapan administration,” Lim added.

On May 30, state Gerakan acting Youth chief Jason Loo (photo) questioned why the plot on Peel Avenue was transferred to Chief Minister Incorporated (CMI), which was set up in 2008 to handle land, tourism and heritage matters.

Loo claimed that the decision to sell the land was based on “one man’s decision”, since the CMI is chaired by Lim.

Loo asked whether such sales followed normal procedures, as it was not the case during the previous state administration under Chief Minister Koh Tsu Koon.

No open tender

Lim said the sale of the 6.4 acre plot of land off Peel Avenue to Island Hospital Group at RM156 million (on a 99-lease) was decided by the state executive council.

The project, to be completed in five years, is the hospital’s plan to increase its beds from 300 to 1,000.

Island Hospital Group, which is funded by a Singapore investor, started operations in Penang in the 1990s.

Lim’s critics also condemned him for not selling the land via an open tender process but he refuted them by saying the firm was a “foreign-direct investment”, and that “game-changers” did not have to go through the process.

Lim urged Loo to show proof that state government decisions were made by “one man”.

He also urged news organisations that published Loo’s remarks to demand proof from the latter or else “You are his accomplice, who have also lied together with the Gerakan leader”.

“These lies were meant to undermine the Penang government and to paint a negative picture of me as the chief minister,” Lim added.