“I want an increased efficiency by all councillors in the state. There are 26 new councillors and I hope they will learn the ropes quickly,” he said after presenting credentials to the councillors in Komtar today.
Jagdeep said while the state exco members had taken a 10% pay cut, the local government councillors’ fixed allowances would not be affected and would remain at RM2,500 per month.
This excludes an additional RM1,200 if councillors attend 12 meetings, and a RM300 phone bill allowance, which brings their total allowance to RM4,000.
As for Penang’s preparedness for local elections, Jagdeep said the state was already sharing its experience with the housing and local government ministry through a series of workshops.
He said since Penang lost its bid to demand a third vote at the Federal Court before, the onus was now on the ministry to implement new laws to allow for local elections.
“We have experience in getting it done,” he said.
Earlier, Jagdeep and Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow presented credentials to new and existing local government councillors from the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) and the Seberang Perai Municipal Council (MPSP).
Jagdeep said the number of political appointees from DAP and PKR had been reduced to make way for Amanah and PPBM reps. The number of civil society representatives is unchanged, with four in MBPP and three in MPSP.
There are a total of 15 new faces in MBPP and 11 in MPSP. They will be sworn in on July 2 (MPSP) and July 3 (MBPP) respectively. Their terms will run from July 1 to Dec 31, 2019.
At MBPP, DAP appointees lead the group with nine, followed by PKR (7), Amanah (2) and PPBM (2).
On the mainland, MPSP councillors are led by DAP with nine councillors, followed by PKR (8), Amanah (2) and PPBM (2).
On the NGO front, MBPP councillor and vocal Penang Forum member Khoo Salma Nasution has been replaced by fellow Penang Forum member Chee Heng Leng.
The other NGO appointees include Sophia Shung Yin Ni (Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce), Latifah Hussainsa (Pertubuhan Kebajikan Wanita Prihatin) and Hari Krishnan Ramakrishnan (Persatuan Belia Infiniti).
At MPSP, Cameron Kang Yau Chuang from Penang Forum leads the NGO group, with Wong Chee Keet (Penang Chinese Chambers of Commerce) and Tengku Rasidah Tengku Kamarudin (Pertubuhan Kebajikan Wanita Prihatin).