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Sunday 14 February 2010

Quit your post, Zahrain told

GEORGE TOWN: Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has demanded that Independent Bayan Baru MP Datuk Seri Zahrain Mohd Hashim resign as the board chairman and director of Island Golf Properties Bhd (IGP).

IGP is a subsidiary of the Penang Development Corporation (PDC), the state economic arm.

Lim said Zahrain was appointed as IGP chairman and director based on his previous position as a state PKR leader.

‘‘As a matter of principle, he should quit. I am waiting for him to make the move although as the PDC chairman, I am empowered to remove him,’’ he told a press conference here yesterday.

Lim said that in Zahrain’s statement on Friday when he quit PKR, the first two paragraphs were devoted to the controversy in IGP.

“This shows he is interested in personal issues rather than his party’s struggle,’’ he said.

Lim said their relationship turned sour after he went against Zahrain’s recommendation that the operations of the Bukit Jambul Country Club, an 18-hole golf course under IGP, be outsourced and awarded to a RM2 company.

“The RM2 company has no track record of managing golf courses.

“Furthermore, it was only formed two months before the open-tender process was initiated in December, 2008,” Lim said.

Zahrain, when contacted, said he would quit the IGP post and was in the process of drafting his resignation letter.

He said that since his announcement, he had been deluged with SMSes, both in support of and against his decision.

Zahrain urged his ex-PKR colleagues to respect his decision and appreciate his contributions to the party.
At another function, Umno supreme council member Datuk Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi urged PKR members not to delay in leaving the party as they had “long been played out” by party leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“I urge PKR MPs, there is no need to ponder any more. It’s time to leave and become independents,” Dr Mohd Puad said, adding that he was certain that there would be more resignations among PKR lawmakers.

Source:By IAN MCINTYRE and ANDREA FILMER
newsdesk@thestar.com.my

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