Penang calls Azmin Ali 'lazy'

Malaysiakini:

Penang CM sets record straight, calls Azmin 'lazy'

CORONAVIRUS | Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow today accused Putrajaya of announcing the conditional movement control order (MCO) before providing adequate time for the 13 state governments to prepare.

In a public address, Chow (above) said Putrajaya held a meeting with the 13 state chief executives on April 28 and were briefed about the conditional MCO and the status of the economy.

Following this, Chow said the chief executives then sought more time to strategise on how to reopen the economy and study the new government guidelines for specific industries.

The guidelines were supposed to be shared with the state governments on April 30, but Chow claimed this never happened.

"I must put on record no state government objected to the conditional MCO during the April 28 meeting.

"But we wanted time to strategise the implementation," said Chow.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced the reopening of the economy on May 1.

The guidelines or standard operating procedures were then released over the next two days.

Penang has chosen to only open up the economy on May 8 to give time for the government and businesses to prepare themselves.

Five other states - Sabah, Sarawak, Kelantan, Pahang and Kedah - did not open up their economies yesterday. Some of the states will only decide whether to do so within this week.

Chow said Muhyiddin was "very excited" about restarting the economy and called International Trade and Industry Minister Azmin Ali "lazy" for failing to consult the states.

"It was unprecedented for so many states, whether they are from Perikatan Nasional or Pakatan Harapan, to take a different approach from what Azmin had expected.

"I want to ask the senior minister: What was he expecting when as the minister in charge he was lazy to engage all the state government to reach a consensus on the implementation (of the conditional MCO)?" asked Chow.