YOURSAY | ‘Nobody is demanding DAP dress in rags but expensive garments are uncalled for right now…’

New Mercedes: Penang CM under fire from allies

Vijay47: This is unbelievable. DAP has always presented itself as a humble party dedicated to the service of the people without indulging in obscene extravagance.

After the vehement condemnation of PAS when it went on a Mercedes-Benz frolic, DAP has now destroyed its moral high ground and any right to criticise others.

What Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow has clearly demonstrated is that politicians, red or green, are all the same beneath the mantle of saintliness.

On a personal level, since DAP has severely damaged its pristine image of integrity, people may now wonder whether party leader Lim Guan Eng did have his fingers in the cookie jar after all.

Nobody is demanding that DAP be dressed in rags but certainly riches in garments are not called for right now.

Penang has just lost four crucial allocations for development projects, supposedly at the hands of a vindictive federal government. Covid-19 is returning with greater savagery, threatening to exact a high toll in its wake. And Chow responds with this display of insensitivity and arrogance.

DAP, your recent problems and challenges do not seem to have taught you any lessons. Your dalliance with Umno has weakened your foundation and cracks are already visible with the unthinkable happening, that your assemblypersons would actually desert you to join, of all creatures, MCA.

Your only possible defence, chief minister, is that Covid-19 affects the brains.

BlueFish0451: It is a bad political move but not a wrong move, technically.

Changing a seven-year-old car is not a bad idea. Warranty, safety, reliability, efficiency, and even prestige when meeting foreign investors, are necessary.

Being efficient and clean is more important. One case of corruption like just 15 percent of the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project for Sarawak schools in 2017 could buy you 350 units of such Mercedes cars.

The Penang Pakatan Harapan government has been administering the state well, which is more important. So, don't miss the wood for the trees.

Pegasus: Chow should be magnanimous and tell the state government, thank you but I do not need such a luxurious car. A smaller Mercedes or Camry will do. If he says this, he will command a lot of respect from the people, his allies, and enemies.

Do the right thing, Chow, for the sake of your reputation and for your party. Don’t give your enemies ammunition to bring you and your government down.

Constitutional Supremacy: The Kelantan case was different - they had bought Mercedes cars for each of the whole executive council.

Moreover, that state is poor and cannot even pay the salary of their staff. Their Mercedes were also of a higher class, costing more than RM600,000 each.

In this case of Penang, it is only for the chief minister. The cost is RM400,000-plus. The state is well-managed and there is a budget surplus. They have paid out millions to the elderly and the poor, not forgetting religious places of worship.

In Singapore, corruption is not tolerated. So too in Penang. Singapore demands efficiency and hard work. Singapore gives high salaries to ministers so that they will not be tempted to take bribe money. Its budget for this year is more than a trillion ringgit. In Malaysia, the budget is RM330 billion.

Thus, the Penang government, after taking care of their people, working hard to improve the state’s economy, and accumulating a surplus, surely their chief minister can be given a RM400,000-plus Mercedes-Benz.

Thus, Penang cannot be compared with Kelantan.

Sinan Belawan: As Chow is driven around in his new official car, will he notice the decaying structures of a sinking island and hungry people? The euphoria is too much for the DAP politician.

Chow has forgotten the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami on Dec 26, 2004, which devastated Penang. The money spent on the Mercedes could have been used to mitigate the impact of climate change on the poor in Penang.

PW Cheng: All politicians cannot be trusted and they will only have one common interest - self-interest.

They all want to reward themselves once in power. DAP is no different. Once in power for too long, they will show their true colours.

Guan Eng started very well when DAP was elected to the Penang state government in 2008 and he became the chief minister. He was very humble, always travelling in economy class or AirAsia.

He was living in his double-storey terrace house until he bought the controversial bungalow, and travelling in a Toyota Camry before he got his Mercedes S class in 2013.

But as time goes by and judging the current Penang chief minister, they also want to taste the good life as what other heads of states are enjoying.

So, is DAP any different? That’s the political behaviour of all our politicians. It’s only a matter of time. When power gets into their head, Mercedes S-Class gets into their garage.

IndigoBird7612: Indeed, all politicians are the same. Do you need to change the car? Aren't there any cheaper cars?

My daughter got a massive pay cut, no increment, no bonus, and no Prihatin. Her company continuously remind her, "You should be grateful for the job. Many are suffering out there without jobs."

GajahDuduk: Let's make it a rule that every public servant must drive a national car. End of discussion. They can only upgrade once every three years if reliability is really an issue.

Let's have some national pride! It means more jobs for Malaysian workers. And more currency retained in the economy. Why should we buy overpriced Japanese and German cars with taxpayers’ money?

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