Focus on Kedah, accept Penang is independent, Chow tells Sanusi

KEDAH Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammed Sanusi Md Nor should focus on governing his state and accept the historical fact that neighbouring Penang is an independent state guaranteed under the Federal Constitution, said Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.

Therefore, Chow said Sanusi should not have a research team study the historical status of Penang and Kedah.

Responding to reports that the research would be made public this year-end and it would lead to action from Kedah, Chow said that various quarters are entitled to their opinions, but the fact is Penang is a sovereign state under the Federal Constitution.

Sanusi said the findings would be based on archives and agreements dating back to 1821, gathered from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Thailand and Indonesia.

Penang was founded in 1786 by a seafarer and trader named Francis Light.

“We are not denying that Penang used to be a part of Kedah in the past but please accept that Penang is an independent state and that its position is guaranteed by the Federal Constitution,” Chow said.

“There is no need for you to go around the world to gather 20,000 documents about these well-known historical facts,” Chow said after attending the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association (Rehda) Penang Fellowship dinner at the Chinese Recreational Club restaurant last night.

Sanusi, who was educated at Universiti Sains Malaysia before working briefly with the Consumers’ Association of Penang, had earlier sought for Penang to pay higher compensation to Kedah for the lease of the island and Province Wellesley (Seberang Prai) due to the alleged deceit which saw the territory seized from the Kedah sultanate.

Sanusi had earlier sought an annual payout of RM100 million unlike the current arrangement, where Penang provides an annual honorarium of RM10 million to its northern neighbour.

Chow also pointed out that Rehda was a strategic partner of the state in development.

“Despite global economic challenges and the ongoing recovery from the pandemic, Penang’s real estate market has exhibited resilience and growth. In the first nine months of 2023 alone, Penang’s property market not only weathered these challenges but thrived. We saw a 3.82% increase in transaction volume and an impressive 38.9% rise in transaction value, amounting to 17,953 units valued at RM13.2 billion.”

These figures show that the property sector is resilient, said Chow. – July 25, 2024.