4. Be aware of 1. Practise social 3. Wash hands regularly Covid-19 distancing 2. Wear face masks with soap and sanitiser pandemic August 1 – 15, 2020 SPV to lead PTMP implementation Story by Christopher Tan Pix by Adleena Rahayu Ahmad Radzi SPECIAL purpose vehi- cle (SPV) has been incor- A porated to lead the imple- mentation of the mega projects under the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP). Called the Penang Infrastruc- ture Corporation Sdn Bhd, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said it was successfully incorporated on July 9 this year. “The company will be working on the implementation of mega Chow showing the works package contractor implementation projects in the state, such as target dates for each project entrusted to SRS Consortium. the Bayan Lepas LRT (BL LRT), With him are (from left) Deputy State Secretary (Development) Pan Island Link 1 and 2A (PIL Datuk Azhar Arshad, Zairil, Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr P. 1 and PIL 2A) and the Penang Ramasamy, Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Ahmad Zakiyuddin South Reclamation (PSR) that Abdul Rahman, State Secretary Datuk Abdul Razak Jaafar and have been entrusted to SRS Penang Legal Advisor Datuk Norazmi Mohd Narawi. Consortium as the project deliv- ery partner. includes the topside develop- information on the PTMP and its “The Penang Infrastructure ment,” Chow told a press con- .....the Penang government will ensure components throughout the con- Corporation will also be work- ference in Komtar on July 15. struction period,” he said. ing on the implementation of Chow also gave a status up- that the people have access to the lat- Chow added that the Penang the three highways and the un- date of the projects under the Infrastructure Corporation would dersea tunnel projects that are PTMP during the press confer- est information on the PTMP and its be working with SRS Consor- entrusted to the Consortium ence. components...... - CHOW tium to study the financial archi- Zenith Construction (CZC) Sdn The board of directors of the tecture plan for the PTMP. Bhd as the design and build Penang Infrastructure Corpora- “The number of board mem- today (July 15). “We believe that the PSR contractor. tion are Chow, State Secretary bers will be added from time to “Adhering to the CAT princi- and other components of the “In addition, the Penang In- Datuk Abdul Razak Jaafar and time, with the appointment of ples (Competency, Accountability PTMP will be the crucial trans- frastructure Corporation will be state Works, Utilities and Flood experts from certain fields. The and Transparency), the Penang formation products for Penang involved in the planning and Mitigation Committee chairman first board of directors meeting government will ensure that the to achieve competitive growth,” development of the PSR, which Zairil Khir Johari. has been scheduled at 5.30pm people have access to the latest he said. 2 NEWS August 1 – 15, 2020 BULETIN MUTIARA Gallery crucial to conserve historical findings Story by Christopher Tan “I remember an incident a few Pix by Chan Kok Kuan years back that a housing devel- oper had demolished a candi in Bu- The replica of the HE Penang government has jang Valley, Kedah,” he said. 'Penang Woman' is again urged Putrajaya to allo- Ramasamy said on display at the Guar Tcate funds for the setting up he was proud of Uni- Kepah archaeological of the Guar Kepah Archaeological versiti Sains Malay- site. Gallery in Guar Kepah. sia Centre for Global “We hope that the federal gov- Archaeological Re- Neolithic skeleton waste products after a meal is fin- archaeology unit are now manag- ernment can allocate funds under search archaeolo- found in a shell mid- ished, such as shells and bones. ing the Guar Kepah archaeologi- the 12th Malaysia Plan. gist Prof Datuk Dr den in Malaysia. “We have also found historical cal site. “The proposed Guar Kepah Mokhtar Saidin (pix) The radiocarbon artefacts such as stone tools, Also present were Penang Archaeological Gallery project is and his team for the dating showed that pottery and food wastes at the Tourism Development, Arts, Cul- important for us to conserve and job well done,” he the remains of the Guar Kepah archaeological site,” ture and Heritage Committee preserve the artefacts and histori- said. “Penang Woman” he said. chairman Yeoh Soon Hin, Chow’s cal findings. Mokhtar said was approximately Mokhtar said there is a need to political secretary Teh Lai Heng, “The radiocarbon dating done the Guar Kepah 5,710 years, with have a proper archaeological gal- Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim, on the historical findings here historical site was a margin of error of lery to conserve and preserve the Seberang Perai City Council may- showed that they were over 5,000 researched by the British as early plus or minus 30 years. skeleton. or Datuk Rozali Mohamud and years old. as 1851. Middens are basically prehistor- The Penang Chief Minister In- CMI deputy general manager S. “We have to preserve these “In the early years, a total of 41 ic refuse pits that normally contain corporated (CMI) and the state Bharathi. historical discoveries for our future skeletons had been excavated by generation,” Chief Minister Chow the British archaeologists and they Kon Yeow told Buletin Mutiara at were brought to the museum in Dexcom selects Penang for the Guar Kepah archaeological site Leiden, the Netherlands. on July 9. “According to our records, there Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr were three shell middens in Guar its first facility outside US P. Ramasamy said the estimated Kepah. Sadly, two were destroyed cost to set up the Guar Kepah Ar- due to housing and agriculture in DEXCOM INC., a global leader Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, Minister I Datuk Ahmad Zakiyud- chaeological Gallery is RM10 mil- the past,” he said. in continuous glucose monitoring who announced the company’s ex- din Abdul Rahman, state Domes- lion. Mokhtar said the skeleton of the (CGM) systems, has selected Pen- pansion plans in Penang, said the tic Trade, Consumer Affairs and He also urged the federal gov- “Penang Woman” that was found ang as its next destination with the state was proud that Dexcom would Entrepreneurship Development ernment to protect and gazette his- at the Guar Kepah archaeological setting up of a factory at the Batu be investing on a new 28-acre site Committee chairman Datuk Abdul torical sites in the northern region. site in 2017 was the first and only Kawan Industrial Park. for its first facility in Penang. Halim Hussain, Penang Develop- “Dexcom looked beyond the cur- ment Corporation (PDC) deputy rent macro uncertainties. It has general manager Aziz Bakar, in- chosen to invest in Penang despite vestPenang chief executive officer the current Covid-19 pandemic. Datuk Loo Lee Lian and special in- “Dexcom’s new facility will focus vestment adviser to the Chief Min- on the manufacture of sensors and ister Datuk Seri Lee Kah Choon. applicators for the CGM system. According to Chow, 2019 was Construction works are expected an action-packed year for Penang. to begin in the second half of this “Our total approved manufac- year. turing investment hit a record “The new manufacturing facility high, with strong inflows of both will create significant job additions new and re-investments into the over the next 10 years, including state. roles in manufacturing, facilities “Penang recorded RM16.9 management as well as manufac- billion in total approved manufac- turing-related research and devel- turing investment in 2019, an in- opment (R&D). crease of 192% year-on-year, and “It will also mark Penang’s mean- registered more than double its ingful participation in the CGM field, 10-year average of RM8 billion,” and I am proud to share that this he said. will be Dexcom’s third plant and its Dexcom Inc., is a company maiden manufacturing facility out- that develops, manufactures, and side of the United States,” Chow distributes CGM systems for dia- told a press conference in Komtar betes management. It operates on June 24. internationally and is headquar- Also present were Deputy Chief tered in the United States. BULETIN MUTIARA August 1 – 15, 2020 NEWS 3 Domestic tourism on the uptrend Story and pix by Riadz Akmal mestic tourism. With greater emphasis on domestic “Based on the feedback from tourism, Malaysians are starting to ENANG has recorded a pos- hoteliers and hotel associations, I frequent the attractions in Penang, itive growth in the domestic could say that so far the number like this tourist who is discovering Ptourism sector since the in- of room bookings has increased. the wonders of Pulau Jerejak by terstate travel ban was lifted dur- “Over the past few weeks, bicycle. ing the recovery movement control I have gone to various places order (RMCO). around Penang. The latest one Malaysian Association of Ho- was in Pulau Jerejak. I could see tels (MAH) Penang chairman Khoo these places are becoming crowd- Boo Lim said during the week- ed with local tourists. ends, beach hotels have recorded “Thus, this is a good indicator between 70% and 80% occupancy and we hope that Penang’s tour- while city hotels have chalked up a ism industry will rebound sooner 40% occupancy rate. than expected,” he added. “Meanwhile, the occupancy Meanwhile, budget hotel player rate on weekdays is less than OYO Hotels and Homes Malaysia 20%. It’s a little bit low but that is (OYO Malaysia) aims to focus on understand safety and sanitisa- got around 20-30 bookings and tions as part of its efforts to in- understandable. Foreign tourists domestic tourism to mitigate the tion protocols. it spiked to between 50 and 60 crease the occupancy rate among are not able to travel to Penang financial impact of the Covid-19 “This is a good indicator as rooms during weekends.