A big mistake, Penang PKR rep says on removal from state firm

An elected representative should not be bullied into submission, Kebun Bunga assemblyman Cheah Kah Peng said as the political fallout over the sacking of two PKR assemblymen from Penang government companies continues. Cheah said he believed that removing him from the Penang Hill Corporation was a "big mistake". "I believe it is a big mistake that the Penang Hill Corporation (PHC) has done, and may even be illegal, corporately speaking; so I would advise them to rectify and apologise, and do the necessary. "The forced extraction of me from PHC, which is also partly in my constituency, is ultra vires and a hasty act.  "I will inform my constituents of this grave injustice and continue to assist the people of Penang Hill despite the oppression," he told a press conference today in Komtar, George Town. Cheah was removed as a director in PHC last month following his move together with four other PKR reps in abstaining from voting to reject a Barisan Nasional (BN) motion on land reclamation in during the state legislative assembly in November last year. The other PKR rep, Ong Chin Wen, was also removed from his director's posts in Penang Invest and Island Golf Properties Bhd, a subsidiary company of Penang Development Corporation. Ong is the Bukit Tengah assemblyman and had also abstained from voting against the BN motion in the state assembly. Cheah said he was informed that he need not attend a PHC meeting on January 29 on the same morning because he was no longer part of the organisation. He said he did not know what transpired that led to his removal. "The directorship is renewable. A government-linked company is not a democratic government or a dictatorship, but a corporate entity that goes by collective board decisions. I don't know what transpired. "After I was told of my removal, I received a letter telling me to sign my resignation letter or to acknowledge it... I didn't study it. I just kept the letter." Cheah, a lawyer by profession, said the move would impact his duties as an assemblyman. "This (the directorship) is not important, but if I am not in PHC, I will be at a loss when it comes to development on Penang Hill. "My position is to serve my constituency and do my duty as an assemblyman," he said. – February 24, 2016.]]>