All About A RM2 Company

Dropped Penang PKR Chief and MP for Bayan Baru, Zahrain Hashim dropped a bombshell a few days back by giving The Star an exclusive, calling Penang Chief Minister, a "dictator", a "chauvinist" and a "communist". Where, most will ask, did that come from?

Short of Zahrain telling you the "why" himself, or anyone who can read his mind, we can only speculate on the reasons for his incredible outburst.

Penang DAP has provided some plausible reason for this. Firstly, could Zahrain be a closet racist, and after being dropped by PKR as the Penang chief become politically frustrated?

[Chow Kon Yeow, Penang DAP Chief] also rapped Zahrain for questioning why a third of Lim’s speech during the first Pakatan Rakyat National convention last Dec 19 was in Mandarin.

“Clearly Zahrain was absent as Lim had spoken 85 per cent in Bahasa Malaysia with the remainder 15 per cent in English and Mandarin. But even if one third of Lim’s speech had been in Mandarin, is it a crime to speak in one own’s mother tongue? This extremist approach befits a typical Penang Umno leader and not a PKR or Pakatan Rakyat leader,” Chow added, saying Zahrain appeared politically frustrated over his removal as Penang PKR chairman.

Or could it be because of a RM2 company?

“Further, Lim had informed me [Chow] of Zahrain frustrations with Lim for refusing to endorse Zahrain’s decision last year as Chairman of Island Golf Properties in awarding a tender for the privatised management of the Bukit Jambul Golf Club to a RM2 company.

“As Chairman of PDC, Lim had recommended that the Board of Directors over-rule the award of tender and called for a fresh retender... The Board of Directors of PDC had accepted Lim’s recommendation that to give the tender of running the only golf club in Penang worth tens of millions of ringgit to a RM2 company would not comply with Penang’s CAT governance of Competency, Accountability and Transparency. Giving contracts to a RM 2 company would make a mockery of change that Penangnites voted for in the 2008 elections and make Penang Pakatan Rakyat no different from BN,” he added.

Chow said by holding firm to CAT, the Penang state government has been able to turn a projected deficit of RM35 million in 2008 budget to a record surplus of RM 88million.

The next question is, is this true? Or did we make the story up to cover up for Guan Eng's "dictatorship"?

Zahrain did not refute the claim that he wanted to award the contract to a RM2 company. He only offered lame excuses as to why he did so:

Kata beliau, apabila tender pengurusan kelab itu dibuka hanya sebuah syarikat yang membuat bidaan.

“Oleh kerana hanya satu syarikat mengemukakan bidaan, maka lembaga kelab memutuskan agar syarikat berkenaan menaikkan modal berbayar dan diberikan tawaran projek pengurusan.

“Ini keputusan lembaga, bukan keputusan saya seorang selaku pengerusi kelab... ini keputusan bersama lembaga,” kata beliau.

So first, he claimed that only ONE company made an offer to manage the Golf club, the only one on Penang Island. Secondly, it was the Board's decision and nothing to do with him.

I can only say that it is laughable that in an "open" tender (if it was ever an "open" tender) to manage Penang Island's sole golf club which is owned by Penang Development Corporation, only ONE company, and only a RM2 company without any track record of managing golf clubs was interested in submitting a bid to manage the club.

And even if there was only 1 bid by such a RM2 company, then it will then be reasonable to expect the tender to be called off, and a re-tender exercise be carried out so that more qualified firms will bid to manage the club.

But no, Zahrain had wanted the RM2 company to be awarded the contract to manage the multi-million ringgit golf club where he was appointed the chairman by the Penang State Government.

And guess what, with the re-tender exercise, it had no problems attracting proven and successful golf club management companies to take part in the tender exercise.

So Zahrain, was the Chief Minister not right to cancel the initial award? Were you upset because you were not "consulted" or because the RM2 company was not successful in the bid? Why don't you explain further who are the owners of this RM2 company, what is their background and track record?

The Pakatan Rakyat government has no time for the practise of selective favouritism in the management of the government affairs. We are serious about implementing a competent, accountable and transparent government. Anybody who doesn't share these goals can go join UMNO where crony contracts, for the moment anyway, are still aplenty and awarded without even the need of a tender, open or closed.

And Zahrain has the cheek to claim that "Saya seorang (pemimpin) yang ada prinsip. Jangan perlekehkan saya.” What a joke!