.jpg "Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu addresses members of the press during the State Secretariatu00e2u20acu2122s Raya open house in Ipoh June 26, 2019. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Farhan Najib")
IPOH, June 26 — Further discussions are still needed before the Pasir Pinji market can be rebuilt, Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu said today.
He said while the majority of the people who participated in a survey last weekend voted for a new market, the state will need to take into consideration the views of all traders before coming to a final decision.
“If the traders want air conditioning for the market, we cannot proceed as we cannot afford it,” he said.
Ahmad Faizal was speaking to reporters after attending State Secretariat’s Raya open house at the State Secretariat building here today.
Pasir Pinji assemblyman Howard Lee was initially quoted by Sinar Harian as saying that a referendum would be held to obtain the people’s view on the rebuilding of the market, after earlier rounds of discussion with the traders failed to reach a breakthrough.
Ahmad Faizal stressed that it was not a referendum but a survey.
“I think his (Lee) officer had used the wrong term. I regret it and I apologise for it. What his office did was to gather feedback from the people whether to rebuild the market,” he said.
“We received many proposals and we’ve decided to let the people decide on what to do with the market,” he added.
Local Chinese media reported that a total of 1,715 people had voted in the survey conducted over the weekend, with 1,615 agreeing that the market needs to be rebuilt.
