PERMATANG Pasir state assemblyman Muhammad Faiz Fadzil has extended an invitation to PAS member Mohd Firdaus Nawi to visit Penang to observe the differences in how the state and Kelantan are managed.
This came after Firdaus who is Kelantan PAS deputy Youth chief had chastised Community Communications Department (J-KOM) director-general Datuk Mohammad Agus Yusoff for voicing his concerns about Kelantan’s lack of basic services.
J-KOM is a unit under the Prime Minister’s Department aimed at conveying accurate information on the government’s policies to the people.
“You cannot deny the fact that Kelantan is facing issues due to weaknesses of the PAS government compared with Penang which is clean under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government,” Faiz remarked.
He claimed that Kelantan was one of Malaysia’s least developed states due to the PAS government’s failure to develop the local economy, eliminate poverty, and address significant environmental issues.
Faiz invited Firdaus and his PAS colleagues on a study tour of Penang to see what they could learn and apply to Kelantan.
“As a Penang state representative, I welcome Firdaus and his PAS friends to have an educational trip to Penang,” he said.
Faiz mentioned that George Town was named ASEAN clean tourist city in 2022.
He also expressed belief that learning from the administration of George Town will help Kelantan achieve a cleaner “Madani” development.
“Under the Harapan government, Penang became one of the earliest states to implement Source Separation Policy since 2016,” Faiz noted.
“The Penang state government is also implementing the Raw Water Contingency Plan and the raw water capacity is expected to increase by 569 mil litres per day by 2030.”
He asserted that there are no concerns about dirty water, unmanaged garbage, or lost employment opportunities in Penang.
“Penang is often falsely accused of playing racial and religious sentiments. However, in reality, the Malay community here lives in good conditions and Islam is also practiced and flourishing very well,” he said.
Penang has been ruled by the DAP-led government for 15 years since 2008, while PAS ruled Kelantan for 33 years since 1990. – April 28, 2023
Main pic credit: DCM
