GEORGE TOWN, Nov 20 — Gerakan deputy president Oh Tong Keong said his unrepresented party will play the role of the Opposition in the state to keep the “arrogant” state government in check.
He claimed Pakatan Harapan (PH) has grown conceited in Penang after winning its third term.
“Those who are arrogant will be defeated one day. DAP has become conceited with their victory, but they must remember there is no certainty in politics,” Oh said.
“Gerakan may not have any seats but we will play our role as a strong Opposition to monitor PH’s policies,” he said when contacted today.
Oh was responding to Penang DAP chairman Chow Kon Yeow who recently said Gerakan is no longer a threat to PH or DAP.
Instead, the Penang chief minister categorised non-governmental organisations (NGO) such as Penang Forum as the new Opposition in the state.
Oh, who is also Penang Gerakan chief, said his party refrained from joining NGOs in their protests against state projects.
“We don’t want to politicise these issues and we don’t want to meddle in the NGOs’ causes,” he said.
In recent months, NGOs have been increasingly active in protesting against the state’s Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), Pan Island Link (PIL1) highway project and proposed hotels on Penang Hill.
Oh said the PH government should look at fulfilling its pledges instead of belittling the Opposition.
He pointed out that PH promised to resolve flooding issues in the state but has yet to deliver.
“We still get floods and worse, another landslide that claimed nine lives just a year after the landslide in Tanjung Bungah that killed 11 workers,” he said.
He said the state government did not allocate enough funds to rehabilitate and restore the damaged hill slopes in the state.
He also demanded to know why only the toll for motorcycles was abolished and not for all vehicles as promised by PH.
“There are still so many issues plaguing the state that PH has failed to address,” he claimed.
He said the PTMP was merely an empty promise that may not even resolve the state’s traffic congestion issues.
“It has failed to take off and there are many other promises that they have failed to fulfil. It is time they explain themselves to the people,” he said.
