BULETIN MUTIARA Nov /1 2011

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    November 2011: Issue 1/11 Edisi Bahasa Inggeris, Tamil dan Ci

    THE realization of the sPICE plan is a matter of righttiming and right person crossing paths. In 2008, the

    Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) was in a dilemma

    over the fate of the Penang International Sports Arena(PISA). Although the island landmark has hosted manymajor events like concerts, sports competition, andindoor exhibitions, the complex has been slowly falling

    apart.The maintenance and operation of the PISA costs

    the MPPP RM2 million per year. Despite that, the wearand tear have rendered parts of the structures unsuitableand unsafe for use. The acquatic centre was closed for

    over a year, MPPP president Hajjah Patahiyah bintiIsmail told the Buletin Mutiara during an interview ather ofce. Also present was MPPP building director Ar

    Yew Tung Seang.When the Pakatan Rakyat took over the Penang ad-

    ministration in March 2008, it saw the need for an inter-

    national convention centre to cater to the dynamic growthof the state. Hence, a request for proposals and recom-

    mendations on the matter was mooted in August 2009.Its a matter of right timing, Ar Yew told the Bu-letin Mutiara. We were having so many problems with

    the deteriorate condition of PISA, and the only optionwas to repair the various structures. But it costs a whoop-ing RM25 million. Then, the Pakatan Rakyat comes upwith the call to build an international convention centre,and we received the proposal for sPICE.

    The Buletin Mutiara had asked the MPPP to explainand clarify the sPICE issue in view of the controversygenerated by the Penang Barisan Nasional leaders whoquestioned its viability and making all sorts of allega-tions on the project.

    Penang Gerakan chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan,

    in particular, has been in the forefront running dowproject, making unwarranted and unjustied comm

    on it, claiming that it is a white elephant project.

    The sPICE will fulll Penangs aspirations to becan international intelligent city that is a locatiochoice for investors, a destination of choice for tou

    and the habitat of choice for sustainable living. Thimportant portions are (1) the RM250.9 million sPcomplex; (2) a new 7-acre public park; (3) a renovrefurbished, and upgraded Penang International SpArena (PISA); and (4) a repaired, refurbished,

    upgraded aquatic centre.The sPICE project will be the platform to pr

    Penang to become a world-class player in the jeglobal market, bringing enormous economic bene

    Penangites. It surely is something all Penangites sh

    endorse and support.

    The economic favorthat sPICE will bring

    Launching o sPICE exhibition or public viewing and eedback on January 2011. Far right Ar Yew Tung Seang and Hajjah Patahiyah briefng Exco members and Lim Guan Eng

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    November 20112

    THE Barisan Nasional has been distributing leaets tohomes of Penangites on what it claims is that the sPICE

    project is too SPICY for Penangite.

    The propaganda pamphlet contains 12 points thattotally dees simple logic. This is surely not too surpris-ing, considering the lies the Barisan Nasional is so usedto spin to mislead Penangites.

    The Buletin Mutiara examines the 12 points in theBarisan Nasional leaet to give Penangites a clearerpicture of the actual sPICE project.

    1. Penangites will get a much welcome 7-acreroof top park which is a place for families to

    converge and spend quality time. Green parksare especially rare now and hence, the 7-acregreen lung will be bonus.

    2. The Barisan Nasional tries to fool Penangitesabout the 60 years dilapidated old spice. The

    term of the agreement is 30 years with optionsof 15 + 15 years. The MPPP has the option

    to get back a fully operational sPICE withestablished businesses in 30 years.3. Development of the 1,500 units will be well

    distributed and impact is not signicant becausedeveloper will denitely build homes that areconducive to sell their properties. Moreover, thestate has density ratio ruling to adhere to.

    4. The Barisan Nasional has again contradicted

    itself. House prices will be stabilized with theextra 1,500 units as there are more supplies.

    5. Yet another silly statement from the BarisanNasional is its claim that land prices will goup. The extra 1,500 units will not have signicantimpact to pressure the land price to spike.

    6. Trafc assessment and careful studies have beencarried out to ensure that the concerns shownby residents in the area are being looked

    into. Penang is committed to be an internationalcity, and plans are in the pipeline to improve

    trafc signicantly with several roads upgradingin future.

    7. This project is a GBI (Green Building Index)complex. It is a green project, hence the argumentof ash ood is irrelevant.

    8. The Barisan Nasional has claimed that water

    pressure will be low with the sPICE project. Isit implying that water authority like the PBA,which is one of the worlds best water utilitycompany, is not capable?

    9. The Barisan Nasional also discredits the TNB

    ability to perform and implied that the TNBcannot ensure it is capable by saying that therewill be lower and unstable electricity supply.

    10. Pollution is minimized when a building is incompliance with the GBI.

    11. How can there be less greeneries when theexisting 3.5 acre park is upgraded to a 7-acrefamily park free for the public to use?

    12. The Barisan Nasional cla im of o veralldeterioration of quality of life shows its

    ignorance. When we have a world class MICE(meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition )centre, an acquatic centre, green park and retailoutlets, we have enhanced the surroundings withspill-over effects in sectors like tourism, MICE,

    service industries and etc for the whole state.The Barisan Nasional attempt to sabotage a project

    like sPICE exposes its selshness in twisting for its political mileage. The Barisan Nasional ising to rob Penangites off a world-class facility w

    provides Penangites with employment, recreahealthy lifestyle and an international name inMICE industry.

    If Penangites want Penang to move ahead, thentime for them to add some avour, i.e. sPICE, to life and lifestyle.

    BN launches pungent campaign

    against sPICE

    An artist impression of sPICE with the 7-acre green park

    Current condition of PISA

    Level 47, Komtar

    10503 Penang

    Phone : 04-650 5468, 012-225 3080

    Fax : 04-261 5923

    Email : [email protected]

    EDITORIALEditor : Yap Lee Ying

    Assistant Editors :

    Zuliana Aziz, Ainul Wardah Sohili

    (Bahasa Malaysia)

    Chan Lilian (English)

    Tam Poh Guek (Mandarin)

    D. Bhavaneswari (Tamil)

    Photographers : Law Suun Ting,

    Ahmad Farhan Fauzi, Chan Lilian

    Graphic designer : Loo Mei Fern

    Media Consultant : Thomas Lee Seng Hock

    BULETIN MUTIARA

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    November 2011 3

    SIXTEEN reporters andphotographers from Penang

    Chinese Daily Reporter andPhotographers Association(PEWAJU) shaved theirheads bald to help raise somemoney for cancer patients.

    Chief Minister Lim GuanEng, accompanied by stateexecutive councilor PheeBoon Poh, was present towitness their noble act at the

    Youth Park on Sunday 2

    October 2011 during theRelay for Life 2011 cam-paign.

    The Relay For Life is acommunity-based fun-lled

    campaign to raise cancerawareness and much neededfunds to help poor cancerpatients. The programme is

    an annual affair in Penang. Asea of purple t-shirt partici-pants ooded the Youth Park,

    walking for 16 hours while having fun.You are all courageous to sacrice your hair to help

    those in need. Even though all of you are so busy with

    your work, you have spared the time to create a caringsociety with your volunteerism. In the process, you

    may understand how cancer patients felt when they

    lose their hair du

    treatment, CM Limin his speech at the ev

    The h igh-sp i rcrowd at the Youth on that morning show

    caring and loving spiPenangites. It is inwith Penang state govments vision to cremore caring commun

    A caring society swith people with a wi

    heart and high spirlend a helping hand tneedy and the less f

    nate. I believe all ohere today are lendinghands and togethershow our love and cCM Lim said.

    Pewaju raise RM30from the fund-raie v e n t , a n d d o n aRM21,000 to the Pe

    Hospice Society. For more information on the Hos

    check out its website: http://www.penanghospicemy/.

    Media people go bald

    to help cancer patients

    Group photo o shaved journalists with CM Lim Guan Eng and Phee Boon Boh. (photo courtesy o CW Yeap)

    THIS is the first time we have been given the

    recognition of our roles as water sports operators,said Zainul Hasnizan, 29. In overseas, beachboys are professional. Unfortunately, over here inPenang, what we have is bad press, often portray-ing us in bad light.

    Zainul was commenting on the efforts by thePenang state government to provide beach opera-tors with proper training and recognition to raisetheir public profile in the tourism industry.

    Zainul said he was really grateful to the state

    government and happy for the opportunity to bepart of the 160 participants selected for a workshop

    for beach operators and the group of people com-monly known as beach boys.The workshop was organized by the Penang

    Municipal Council (MPPP) with the cooperationof Tourism Ministry and the Golden Sands Hotel.

    Penang Local Government and Traffic Manage-ment Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow of-ficiated the opening of the worshop at the Golden

    Sands Resort.Chow said that the workshop is a significant

    event as it is the first time the Penang state hasmanaged to gather all the beach boys, MPPP en-forcement officers and the police for a joint brain-

    storming workshop.He hopes that with the training

    and the setting-up of the PenangWater Recreation Association,things would be regulated and an

    improved and enhanced waterrecreation programme could beoffered to tourists.

    It is our responsibilities toensure that Penang, especially

    Batu Feringghi, remains as an at-tractive destination to local andforeign tourists. Their presence

    guarantees our economic well-being. The tourism and service

    industries are the second mostimportant sector in our economy,Chow said.

    At the end of the training ses-sion which included briefing on water sports laws

    and regulation, water safety, procedures duringemergency and accidents, and a course on provid-ing better service to tourists, the beach boys werepresented certificates by MPPP president HajjahPatahiyah Ismail.

    Eight zones have been demarcated at the Batu

    Feringghi beach, and the beach operators license

    and insured. With the training and the positivattitude from every sector, especially the beacboys, Penang is set to regain its beach resofame. After all, it has been named one of the to10 islands in the world you must see before yo

    die by Yahoo!

    Badge of recognition for our beach boys

    MPPP Chie Hajjah Patahiyah Ismail (in light blue blouse) with thebeachboys and trainers at certifcate award ceremony

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    November 20114

    Story & Pix by Chan Lilian

    WHO is going to take care of my wife if anythinghappens to me? Quah Thean Hock, 51, choked withemotions, said when asked why he refused to seek treat-

    ment for the huge growth in his mouth that had causedall the teeth from the lower jaw to be dislodged.

    During an interview of Buletin Mutiaria, Quah wasseen looking lovingly at his wife Lim Poh Gaik, 48, andoccasionally wiping away her tears and giving her sips

    of water.Poh Gaik has a string of illnesses, including cancer,

    heart problems and diabetes. She is blind, unable towalk, and sometimes cant even move her limbs. Sheneeds a lot of money for her dialysis treatment -- RM600

    per month. Regular injections to enable her body to

    endure the treatment costs a further RM500. Thean Hockhas to stop working as a lorry driver to take care of her.The couple is in dire straits as they couldnt afford

    to send their 14-year-old youngest daughter to schoolanymore. They also nd it hard to pay for the dialysis

    treatment although Socso pays RM270 per month forthe treatment.

    Thean Hock, meanwhile, dares not seek medicaltreatment for his own condition because he knows they

    cannot afford the medical fees and he wants to be aroundto take care of his ailing wife.

    There are thousands of people likeThean Hock and Poh Gaik who are toopoor to afford medical treatment and yet,they do not qualify for welfare or chari-

    table aid as they have children whoprovide income, albeit very little.

    According to statistics, in 2009 therewere1,804 patients who need dialy-sis. As at April 2011, there are 45 dialy-

    sis centres in Penang. The PenangGeneral Hospital has 75 machines whichare not enough to cope with the increas-ing number of patients.

    Hence, the Penang state governmenthas identied two locations for the set-ting-up of Penang CAT Dialysis Centre

    one in Balik Pulau and the other on themainland.For the proposed Balik Pulau dialysis

    centre, the Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang (MPPP)has agreed to rent the space for a minimal rental ofRM10 per year.

    Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had announced in June2011 that through a Public and Private Partnership

    Framework (PPP), the building will be renovated ac-cording to specication. They will bear the utility costs,

    rental and renovation costs of RM150,000, while the

    state will bear the operation costs for 10 years, mated to be around RM2mil.

    When these dialysis centres are ready, each kifailure patient only needs to pay RM30 per treatmwhile the state will subsidize RM30. The state gov

    ment will appeal to the federal government to spoRM50. This will ease the burdens of many patientsend stage renal failure.

    State plans subsidized dialysistreatment for poor patients

    Quah Thean Hock taking care of his ailing wife, Lim Poh Gaik

    BUTTERWORTH : The clear blue skies and thewhite clouds at the Dataran Pemuda Merdeka inButterworth made the Penang state level MalaysiaDay parade a picture perfect celebration of unity,harmony, and patriotism.

    Malaysia Day, now a national public holiday,is celebrated on 16 September each year to com-memorate the establishment of Malaysia whenSabah and Sarawak, together with Singapore, took

    the bold step to merge with Malaya to form theFederation of Malaysia. Singapore has since left

    the federation to become an independent repub-lic.

    Nearly 5,000 participants from schools, gov-ernment departments, agencies, uniformed bod-ies, NGOs and other sectors took part in the

    Penang Malaysia Day parade. Thousands ofPenangites lined the 1km stretch to watch theparade, and join in the colourful carnival event.

    Yang Di-Pertua Negeri Tun Abdul RahmanAbbas and his wife Toh Puan Datin Seri Hajjah

    Majimor Shariff were greeted on arrival by ChiefMinister Lim Guan Eng and his wife Betty Chew,

    Speaker Datuk Abdul Halim Hussain, PenangState Secretary Datuk Farizan Darus, and mem-bers of the Penang state executive council.

    After the governor inspected the guard ofhonour, the Second Royal Malay Infantry Regi-ment in Sungai Ara and seven officers marched inwith a giant Jalur Gemilang.

    The crowd was thrilled when a fireman emerged

    from the rooftop of a hotel using the flying foxmethod of propelling himself across the skies tothe building across the road. He left a trail of redand yellow smoke in the blue skies, mesmerizingthe excited crowd.

    The animated coordination shown by the chomaster of the SMK Tunku Abdul Rahman leadinhis 62-member choir in rendering three patriotsongs brought zest and zeal. The audience, including the VIPs on the grandstand, joined in wit

    shouts of Merdeka! while waving the Malaysiaflag proudly.

    The simultaneous public display of unity, hamony, and patriotism made Malaysia Day celebrtion in Penang a memorable event.

    Penangites come together

    to celebrate Malaysia Day

    Yang Di-Pertua Negeri Tun Abdul Rahman Abbasinspecting the guard of honour The multi-racial spectators mesmerized

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    November 2011 5

    PENANGITES may have noticedlarge billboards promoting thevarious state government pro-grammes sprouting up around the

    island and on the mainland. Theadvertising blitz is a small effortby the Communications Divisionunder the Chief Ministers Ofce

    to inform Penangites on how they

    can register for the various pro-grammes like the Senior Citizens,Single Mother, People with Dif-ferent Abilities, and the GoldenChild campaign.

    The next time you drive past

    one of these billboards and see thesmiling happy faces on display,remember that these are peoplewho are part of our community,

    living among us, and they areamong the people whom havebenetted from the caring society

    culture initiated and promoted bythe Pakatan Rakyat state adminis-

    tration.Being a photographer who con-

    stantly follows the chief ministeron assignments, I have many sto-ries to tell. I want people to know

    who are those people smiling fromthe billboard and why they arehappy. When you know that these

    are not studio pose but random,candid shots, snapped at the right

    moment, I hope you will feel en-deared to the faces.

    The baby whom CM Lim is car-rying on the billboard is Basil Ngui. His mom is ourbusy Communications Division drector Yap Lee Ying,

    who is also the Buletin Mutiara chief editor. Yap wascoordinating an event right after work, and shebrought her baby along. When CM Lim arrived at thefunction, he carried baby Basil. I was standingnearby and noticed how baby Basil immediatelyendeared himself by placing his head on the CMs

    shoulder. I called that the Kodak moment, rarely canI get such a shot again.

    Mak Cik Nur and her granddaughter are the ones

    sitting there smiling at you. Going to Mak Cik Nurshome was a humbling experience for me as a pho-

    tographer. I arrived at her house and found that sheand her husband were both relying on one rickety,broken wheelchair. The husband is blind, deaf andcouldnt walk. Mak Cik Nur has her leg amputatedand though she cant walk, she still struggled around

    their worn-out house, washing and cooking. CM Lim,who is the state assembly member for AIr Putih, rst

    gave the old couple two brand new wheelchairs.However, he returned a second time out of compas-sion to repair their leaking and debilitated home.

    Being blind, deaf, and certainly not in touch withthe latest news, both couple do not know that the

    visitor to their humble abode is the Chief Minister ofthe state. The most signicant reply I got from her

    when I asked how she felt about CM Lim visitingher, was, Taukeh itu? Dia pun baik jugak noh?Dear Mak Cik Nur certainly know that it is a gener-ous man who had been to her home. And CM Limslow profile visit had benefitted them, minus the

    usual brouhaha of politicians doing good deeds withashing cameras and TV cameras.

    As a photographer, we sometimes need to take alot of photos just to get the right one. It helps when

    we are able to chat up the subjects.I was at the launching of the Eden Handicap Cen-tre and a person named Lim Gim Chye was chattingwith me. He told me that the Eden Handicap Centrehad helped him to get a job, give him dignity andprovide him some nancial independence. I asked

    permission to take his photos. Usually, I asked per-mission for a photo because it is ethical. He told meto put his face on newspaper. Now, I wonder howLim feels when he sees his happy smiling face onbillboards.

    Though I do not take all the photos, I took prideseeing them representing Penangites from huge bill-boards. I have two other colleagues who are photog-

    raphers cum videographers. Our mission is to

    Penangites the stories and faces of other PenangWe hope our little contribution can help to bindpeople closer together.

    We can each do our part to help the old, poorneedy. Please help them to get themselves regist

    under the various programmes. They can seek to register at their nearest service centres of thekatan Rakyat elected representatives, the PegPenyelaras service centers, or the Penang DAP hquarters at Jalan Talipon.

    The stories behind those faces

    The billboard around Penang informing Penangites about the various caring society programs. (Billboard designed by Loo Mei F

    Chan Lilian is a prolic blogger with air for writing. She is a photographer cum

    video journalist in the Communications Division under the Chief Ministers Ofce. Shloves her job because of the people she meetalong the way. Starting with this article, shwill write a regular column Behind the Scen

    to share heartwarming stories. Write to heif you are interested to share a story or aevent that touches human hearts. She cabe contacted at [email protected]

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    November 20116

    Story by Chan LilianPix by Law Suun Ting

    CHIEF Minister Lim Guan Eng was atthe Loh Guan Lye Specialists Centre

    (LSC) on 10 September 2011 to launchthe Better Hearing & Speech AwarenessCampaign and to open the Women &Childrens Wing.

    In his speech, CM Lim congratulated

    the LSC management and staff for theirdedication and success in providing thestate-of-the-art healthcare services inPenang and the Northern region.

    The LSC has also been an active and

    enthusiastic supporter of the state gov-

    ernment effort to continuously promoteMedical Tourism. Since 2006 to 2010,the receipts from the medical tourism inPenang stood at RM840 million.

    According to LSC chief executive officer Dr MaryQuah, the LSC has continued to fulfill its corporatesocial responsibility by offering free communityservices.

    Dr Quah said the LSC Better Hearing & Speech

    (BHS) campaign had been carried out for the pasteight years, with the LSC providing free hearingand speech-language screening.

    She said this year BHS campaign offers 10,000

    free hearing test vouchers to the public.A pair of twin boys were at the function, happily

    participating in a short dance performance to thedelights of the audience. Their mother Mrs Lo HeeChooi, 33, told the Buletin Mutiara about the difci-

    cult time she went through because her twin sonswere both born with hearing disability, and havespeech problem.

    Mrs Lo said she had sought help from public

    hospitals and eventually was referred to the LSCthe necessary operations and hearing implanhelp her boys.

    Mrs Lo said she is grateful to the public for donations and also to the LSC for helping her b

    to hear. Now, the boys are as active and boisteas other normal children after they have had clear implant and are assisted by hearing aids. Tcan now hear and are learning to speak.

    Breaking the sound of silencethe LSC way

    L-R Phee Boon Poh, Mr. Nicholas Loh, CM Lim and Dr Mary QuahThe Lo twins ater cochlear implantand assisted with hearing aids

    Pix by Law Suun Ting

    IMAGINE dead and rotting fishsoak together with the fish youeat? Or cooked decayed meatserved to you? If thats notenough to make your stomach

    churn, how about live but sick-ly chickens stored in filthy,smelly toilets while waiting tobe slaughtered for your nextmeal?

    It is a like scene from a hor-ror movie when a group of

    media members, municipalcouncilors, and enforcementofficers walked into a sundry

    shop at Jalan Bricklin. Blood,feathers and faeces are foundsmeared on the floor, with half-dead chicken struggling help-lessly around.

    Such a scanerio may beshocking to most people, but formany irresponsible sundry shops owners, this istheir way of preparing food to save cost in busi-ness. Usually, these sundry shops supply such

    revolting food to the low-income migrant work-ers, with nary a care for hygiene or health condi-tion.

    The Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang (MPPP)

    public health unit has conducte

    many operations to weed out sucdirty sundry shops. Several departments from the MPPP took part in thcrackdown including the teams fromthe trade licensing, public health in

    spection, veterinary and enforcementAlthough some obstinate erran

    operators continue with their badhabits, some improvements have beenobserved in many cases.

    MPPP councillor Ong Ah Teonsaid the constant checks and raids bythe MPPP enforcement personnel ar

    seeing some positive results, and hurged the public to help by alertin

    the MPPP if they come across suchdirty sundry shops.

    Ong said the public could alert thMPPP so that it could send enforcement units to check out the culprits

    Sundry shops are not allowed tsell fresh fishes or meats. They canonly sell frozen meat.

    The public can call the MPPP Hotline at 022637637 to complain or alert the council of dirt

    outlets.

    Action on dirty sundry shops

    Councillors Ong Ah Teong (3rd m let) and Prem Anand a/l Loganathan (4th m let)with MPPP enorcement ofcers

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    November 2011 7

    IT takes a genuine caring heart for

    the poor to enable the poorer seg-

    ment of society to be cared for.And one person who fits the bill

    is Phee Boon Poh, the lanky, silverhaired, soft spoken Penang stateexecutive councillor in charge of the

    State Caring Society and WelfareCommittee.

    Phee is a veteran in the Penangpolitical and social scene. Prior tothe Pakatan Rakyat taking control of

    the Penang state administration inMarch 2008, Phee has been an as-s e m b l y m e m b e r f o r s e v e r a lterms. Being one of the very fewDAP opposition assembly members

    in the previous Barisan Nasional

    state administration for decades hasmade Phee the steely man he is now.He is a Daniel who had survived thelions den.

    Do not let the soft spoken, gen-tle faade of the simple humble manfools you. Phee is quite the firebrandduring the State Assembly sittings.He remembers facts and numbers,

    has a razon-sharp tongue, and mostimportant of all, he knows his jobwell.

    Recently, Phee was peeved be-cause the poor has been used as

    political tool by the state opposition.Phee claimed that the Penang

    Gerakan Youth had followed and

    tagged along with the welfare officer who was onthe way to hand over some welfare aid to a recipi-

    ent. This puts the poor man in a dilemma as he wasconfused about who had actually helped him thestate welfare department, or the BN people fromGerakan who were trying to claim credit for the case.

    This resulted in the poor man digging out a purple

    packet from his pocket and said, Saya tak mau wangini, satu sen pun saya tak guna (I do not want thismoney, I have not touched a single sen.)

    Phee is not one to hold his tongue when he hassomething to say. You ingat ini wang bapa kamu

    kah? Ini adalah wang rakyat , (You think this isyour fathers money? This is the rakyats mon-ey) Phee has repeated that a few times to remindthe opposition BN people.

    Phee pointed out how the Pakatan Rakyat stategovernment has increased the number of senior

    citizens qualified for the welfare aid of RM300 permonth.

    Data shows that during the BN administration, itonly provided welfare aid of RM300 per month to1,364 people in 2006. Now, this figure has increased

    by leaps and bounds. In August 2011, a total of 7,032senior citizens received welfare aid under the Ban-tuan Orang Tua or BOT programme.

    This welfare aid is not to be confused with theyearly RM100 Senior Citizen Appreciation pro-

    gramme when all Penangites over the age of 60 years

    old receive RM100 eachregardless of their finan-cial position. A total of127,000 have registeredunder this programme.

    Although the BN con-

    tinues to try fooling peo-ple with claims that itprovided RM300 permonth to senior citizens,while the Pakatan Raky-

    at gives only RM100 peryear, Penangites are nowmore informed. TheRM300 per month wel-fare aid is given only to

    qualified and needy sen-ior citizens and is a so-cial responsibility ofgovernment to he lpthose living in pover-

    ty. The RM100 per year,meanwhile, is an addedbonus, with money com-ing from frugal spending of the Pakatan Rakyat stategovernment.

    As far as the Pakatan Rakyat state administration

    under Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng is concerned,the poor and needy in the state will never be forgot-

    ten or neglected. If you know of those poorneedy, especially old folks, being neglected, give Phee a call, and he will make sure the neces

    aid is provided. That is what a caring governmis all about, and that is what the Pakatan Rastate administration is all about, too.

    A heart for the poor

    State Environment, Health, Welare and Caring Society committee chairman PBoon Poh

    A poor man in a quandary over fnancial aid

  • 8/2/2019 BULETIN MUTIARA Nov /1 2011

    16/16

    November 20118

    Story and pix by Chan Lilian

    YOUNG mothers must believe that they are givingthe best food in the world to their babies. As long

    as you believe, you will make it. So long as younever stop, you will be successful.

    A very powerful and convincing message indeed,and delivered by a loving mother whom had success-fully breastfed all her four children.

    Betty Chew, the wife of Penang Chief Minister

    Lim Guan Eng, delivered this very appropriate and

    significant message to young mothers when launch-ing the Making Penang Breastfeeding Friendly

    campaign.During the launching at the

    Straits Quay on 9 October 2011 ,there was a one-minute simultane-ous breastfeeding by 30 moth-ers. A total of 484 mothers from28 hospitals in Malaysia did the

    similar thing simultaneously at thesame time.

    Betty asked mothers to urgeshopping malls, public places andoffices to make it convenient for

    mothers to breastfeed their babies.

    Together we can achievethis. Fathers also can play theirpart in giving support to theirwives, she said, when sharing her

    breastfeeding journey with thosepresent.

    On hindsight, I am glad that Ihave managed to breastfeed all myfour children despite the fact that

    I have to juggle as a full-timeworking mother. I feel like a complete modernwoman, Betty said.

    Betty, who is a lawyer by profession, is the stateassembly member of Kota Laksamana in Malacca.

    The Penang state government is in the midst ofsetting up the first ever lactation room in Komtar. Aconducive room with facilities suitable for breast-

    feeding mothers is available for those working in thegovernment building. Mothers can make use of the

    room to express milk and store them in the frprovided. After work, they can take home thecious food for their babies.

    This facility will be available soon, in time the launch of the Golden Child programme, w

    every new baby born in Penang will receive a packet of RM100 to welcome their arrivals. Pegites can start to register with their respective JK

    and Pakatan Rakyat service centres where the foare available.

    Betty urges mothers

    to give their best

    State Assemblyperson, lawyer and the wife of the Chief Minister, BetChew carries an adorable breastfed baby

    Betty Chew A modern career woman, loving mom,politician and wife of the Chief Minister

    IHP hits the ground running and never looked backStory by Chan Lilian

    Pix by Law Suun Ting

    The doctors and nurses of the Island Hos-pital Penang (IHP) set aside their medicalgowns and uniform, and let their hair downfor a night of partying, music, songs and feast-

    ing at the Penang Equatorial Hotel on Malay-

    sia Day 16 September 2011.Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was there tojoin in the fun, together with IHP executivechairman Tony Tan, managing director Mark

    Wee, and three company directors Prof DrChan Kok Ewe, Dr Michael Khor and DrChong Keat Foong.

    In his speech, CM Lim commended the IHP,saying You hit the ground running and

    never looked back.The IHP opened its door to the public 15

    years ago. Over the years, it has become an attrac-tive destination for many foreign medical tourists.

    Foreigners have come to appreciate that yourhospital like other private hospitals here in Penangoffer world-class facilities comparable with the

    best in the west, and this is done at a fraction

    the cost of healthcare elsewhere, CM Lim saiPenang recorded 250,000 foreign patients a

    RM840 million of revenue between 2006 an2010. The number is increasing and hence, limany other private hospitals, the IHP is expan

    ing its facilities with addition of new buildiprojects.

    The Penang state government, together withe local authorities, notably the MPPP, haapproved these projects in principle, in line wi

    the state goals to be pro-active in helping promote health care and make Penang the leadimedical hub in the Asean and Asia-Pacific rgion.

    We would like the IHP to be one of the priva

    hospitals in Penang to be in the forefront of thholistic approach, in line with its motto, To cusometimes, to relieve often, to comfort always

    CM Lim said. I am sure that the best is yet to comfor the IHP and all of you here.

    L-R : Director of Nursing Ms Sue Chew, Chairman Mr Tony Tan,CM Lim Guan Eng, Director/Advisor DatoProf.Dr Chan Kok Ewe, YB Phee Boon Poh and Managing Director, Mr Mark Wee