M Ramachandran said under PHEB’s 1906 ordinance, a commissioner could serve a maximum of two terms, or two years, unless an extension was approved by the Penang governor.
Rayer has been one of the board’s 13 commissioners since 2008 and was appointed chairman last year. The board manages Hindu-related properties in the state.
Ramachandran, a veteran trade unionist, also claimed that the current board had violated the law by allowing commissioners to head sub-committees.
He said the role of commissioners was to purely focus on policy-making, while executive duties were to be carried out by civil service officers or appointed administrators.
“This law was established to prevent commissioners from taking on executive functions,” he told reporters at a press conference here.
Ramachandran also claimed the board had failed to comply with government regulations, particularly the requirement to deposit minutes of meetings with the Penang state secretary.
He said he had received calls from current board members asking about copies of the minutes and account details, indicating a lack of organisation within the board.
“This would not have happened if there had been a proper handover from the previous administration,” he said, adding that the current board had dismissed the previous administrative workers when it took over last year.
Ramachandran expressed concern that the board had strayed from its original mandate of managing Hindu-related properties, saying it was now involved in religious advisory matters, which he felt was beyond its scope.
He also accused the current board of arbitrarily raising the rent on its properties and imposing high interest on late payments – practices he said were unprecedented for a state government agency.
During his 11-year tenure, Ramachandran claimed, the board had properties worth RM500 million at present market rates and RM5 million in cash reserves.
He also claimed when he took over as executive director in 2011, he found the board to be “effectively dormant”.
FMT has contacted Rayer for comment.