Ex-Penang chief minister Dr Koh Tsu Koon has appealed to the federal government to continue with the mega projects in the state in the wake of Penang Umno’s call for them to be scrapped.

Koh, in a statement today, said the infrastructure projects promised by the federal government should continue for the benefit of the people as they were crucial for future economy, as well as quality of life for Penang and its neighbouring states.

koh tsu koon pc 060308 02 "Successful implementation of these projects will also ensure that Penang will continue to grow as the hub for the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER) as well as the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle.

"Therefore, Gerakan appeals to the federal government to continue with these projects," he added in a Bernama report. He is also the Gerakan acting president and was at the helm of Penang for 18 years.

In the Macrh 8 polls, Koh was defeated by DAP newcomer P Ramasamy in the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat while the state fell into the hands of DAP and PKR.

BN only controls 11 out of 40 state seats in Penang. All the BN seats are held by Umno.

'Don't blame us'

Koh was responding to Penang Umno’s call yesterday to the federal government to stop all proposed mega projects in the wake of the change of the new state government.

The projects that are at stake include those planned under the NCER, second Penang bridge, Penang Outer Ring Road, monorail, the Penang Sentral project, the Rapid Penang bus service and others.

State Umno secretary Azhar Ibrahim said the previous Gerakan-led state government had worked together with the federal government to bring in developments.

"Since the people have clearly rejected development and made their choice for a change, we will recommend to the federal government that it should cancel all such projects.

"Don’t blame us for this," he was quoted as saying in the New Straits Times today.

penang dap pledge 060308 swear Meanwhile, Koh also advised the new state government leaders not to engage in political rhetoric but to adopt a constructive approach to sustain inter-ethnic harmony and social stability.

"DAP leaders must also take steps to provide a conducive environment to ensure the smooth implementation of all projects for continued economic development for the people of Penang," he added in the same statement.

Among the new policies that have been announced by new Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng is that the state government will not practise the New Economic Policy (NEP).

The announcement did not go down well with certain sections of the Malay community and a protest was held outside the state government building at Komtar.