KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 13 — Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng today denied that state-owned land in Bayan Mutiara had been sold cheaply without tender, as claimed by Penang Umno.
Lim said the 102.6-acre plot — located near the Penang Bridge, free trade zone and the Penang International Airport — was sold in 2010 only following a request for proposal (RFP) advertised in newspapers.
He said the state government picked the highest bidder, Ivory Properties Groups Bhd, which had offered RM240 per square foot, or a total of RM1.07 billion, to be paid up in five years.
This was higher than the land value estimated by state development arm Penang Development Corporation (PDC), Lim noted.
“If Umno says the sale price of RM240 per square foot is low and a higher price could have been obtained, why didn’t Umno crony companies submit a tender for the land?” he said in a statement.
The developer is also not exempted from building low-cost homes as well as suraus and houses of worship, as required by the Municipal Council of Penang Island, he stressed.
Lim also said RM500 million from the sale would also go towards the Affordable Homes Fund, which will finance the building of 12,000 affordable homes in Batu Kawan, in addition to the low-cost homes the developer will have to build.
On Friday, Penang Umno chief Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman asked Lim to explain why the reclaimed land in Bayan Mutiara was sold and not developed by PDC.
He had told reporters it was surprising the land was sold to a private developer when PDC had the expertise and experience to carry out projects for the benefit of the people.
Zainal Abidin had added that the state government acted hastily in selling the land sale, the value of which he said could jump to RM10 billion if developed in phases.
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