IPOH, June 13 – Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir said the appointment of a mayor should be based on merit and the qualification of the person and not because of race.

"For the post of mayor, we have to go along with whoever is appointed and should not go into specific such as Malay, Chinese, or Indian.

"If this is the case, then we can never stop from being race-based. A qualified person should be appointed based on merit,” he told a press conference after handing over ‘bubur lambuk’ to civil servants at Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan, here today.

MCA president Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai had suggested that the Chinese should be appointed as mayor or deputy mayor in Chinese majority areas such as Ipoh and Johor Bahru.

A local Chinese newspaper quoted Liow as saying that he made the suggestion to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak recently. — Bernama