PENANG Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow will follow in the footsteps of Lim Guan Eng to stop the public spat he has with the latter over the controversial sharp increase in quit rent rates, introduced this year.
Chow said that he will abide by the party directive from Secretary-General Anthony Loke Siew Fook, who called for an immediate halt to the dispute between the two senior Penang DAP leaders and for the party to arrange a private meeting to resolve the issue.
Lim had accused Chow of allowing the state land and mines department to impose skyrocketing quit rent rates this year, with an increase of up to 3,000 times for some ratepayers, but Chow has defended it as a necessary move.
Chow said that to alleviate the situation, the state has allowed landowners most affected to lodge appeals and for some of them to pay via instalments.
Chow now says in a statement that he plans to submit a report on the progress of the quit rent hike to Loke to explain his side of the public spat with his predecessor, Lim.
Chow was grateful to Loke for stepping in and organising a meeting between him and Lim, and that he would comply with the directive to stop bickering in public.
“I will prepare a report on the implementation of the new quit rent rates, which came into effect on January 1 to Loke. I will also abide by the DAP secretary-general’s directive not to discuss this issue in the media to prevent negative perceptions of the party, the leadership and the Penang government."
He said the affected landowners could still appeal the quit rent increase by filling out the forms at their respective district and land offices.
Yesterday, Loke reprimanded both Lim and Chow over their public tiff, describing it as “unhealthy and inappropriate”.
Loke criticised Lim for taking a highly inappropriate approach to the issue, saying he should understand the importance of maintaining party discipline.
He also said Chow should take the concerns raised seriously, as they involve public interest and reflect grievances from various stakeholders.
Lim defended his criticism, saying he only resorted to it after exhausting all internal mechanisms in Penang.
The former DAP secretary-general nonetheless promised to stop issuing statements on the issue until the meeting with Chow and Loke is held.
Earlier, MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong also joined Lim in taking a critical stance on the state's quit rent structure due to the steep rates imposed.
The Ayer Itam Member of Parliament said a landowner who had been paying RM745 annually since 1994 was recently issued a bill of RM489,775 for the same land – a 65,642% increase.
“You send a bill that shocks people and then tell them to appeal. I have never seen any government in the world raise taxes like this,” he said.
Wee said a “pre-bill anomaly processing model” should be adopted to identify and correct discrepancies or unusually high tax assessments before bills are issued, rather than reacting to complaints afterwards.
“Other states also have this power, but to implement it to such an extreme level is unprecedented,” he said.
Wee's remarks drew a sharp rebuke from Chow, who urged Wee to do his homework first before criticising the state.
Chow said that he has clarified the issue of First Grade land status, which is exclusive in the Straits states of Penang and Melaka. - March 22, 2026.
