Lim Guan Eng pauses public criticism, welcomes meeting with Anthony Loke and Chow Kon Yeow on Penang quit rent dispute

Lim Guan Eng pauses public criticism, welcomes meeting with Anthony Loke and Chow Kon Yeow on Penang quit rent dispute



(Front row, from left) Lim Guan Eng, Anthony Loke and Chow Kon Yeow attend the 2023 Penang DAP State Annual Convention November 19, 2023. Lim has welcomed party secretary‑general Loke’s move to convene a meeting between him and Chow to resolve the ongoing dispute over the state’s steep quit rent increases. — Bernama pic

Saturday, 21 Mar 2026 4:59 PM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, March 21 — DAP veteran Lim Guan Eng has welcomed party secretary‑general Anthony Loke Siew Fook’s move to convene a meeting between him and Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow to resolve the ongoing dispute over the state’s steep quit rent increases.

Lim said in a statement that he appreciated Loke’s intervention and described the proposed discussion as a step toward finding a “satisfactory resolution” to the issue.

“I wish to thank DAP Secretary‑General Loke Siew Fook for his concern and initiative to convene a meeting involving Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow and myself to find a satisfactory resolution over the contentious hike in quit rent in Penang this year, some by more than 3,000 times,” he said.

He said he had exhausted internal channels with the state government before raising the matter publicly, adding that he would refrain from further statements until the meeting takes place.


Lim said his Bagan parliamentary office and Air Putih state assemblyperson office would continue assisting affected landowners with appeal submissions, noting that both offices had helped about 800 applicants so far.


In a statement earlier today, Loke urged both leaders to stop airing their disagreements in public, calling the ongoing exchanges “unhealthy and inappropriate” and stressing that internal differences should not undermine the state government.

The dispute stems from Penang’s revised 2026 quit rent structure, which took effect on January 1 and triggered complaints over sharp increases, including cases highlighted by Lim involving rises of several thousand times.

Chow has defended the revision, saying the examples cited publicly omitted key details such as land size and actual land use, and that the new rates were based on land classification, size and current use.

The state government has offered a 50 per cent rebate on this year’s quit rent and fixed school land at a nominal RM50 per title, excluding international schools.

Lim said he would wait for the meeting with Loke and Chow before making further comments or holding press conferences on behalf of affected landowners.

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The quit saga is only the LATEST in Guanee's regular criticisms of Chow. I have no doubt Guanee will find a new issue to bombard Chow. Now, come to think of it, with Guanee's regular flak hurled at Chow, it's for sure Chow probably became Penang's CM not because he was anointed by Guanee but rather by the party.

Guanee most certainly detests or is jealous of Chow, wakakaka.