The Penang government spent less than RM2 million hosting the North Zone Madani Rakyat programme at the Sungai Nibong Pesta site from May 3 to 5 this year.
The event, which included participation from neighbouring Kedah and Perlis, saw the involvement of 196 state and federal government agencies.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow (PH-Padang Kota) disclosed that the entire North Zone Madani Rakyat programme incurred a total of RM3,700,316.48, shared by both the Transport Ministery (MoT) and the Penang government while responding to a question by Lim Guan Eng (PH-Air Putih) during the oral and answer session at the State Legislative Assembly sitting at the State Assembly Building in Light Street today.
Lim inquired about the total cost, the name of the company awarded the contract to run the programme, whether it was from Penang, and if not, why.
In response, Chow explained that the Penang government had allocated RM2 million to host the programme but spent a total of RM1,977,163.08, resulting in savings of RM22,836.92.
After sharing costs with MoT, Chow said the Penang government incurred additional expenses of RM127,004.84 on sports and religious forums organised by the state government.
Chow said Chilli Hotshoes Asia Sdn Bhd, chosen as the company, is registered in Petaling Jaya.
“The selection of this company was made following financial procedures and related procurement processes after all four companies (two local companies and two companies outside Penang) made their respective presentations.
“The selection of Chilli Hotshoes Asia was based on criteria such as reasonable cost, which was within the budget approved by MMK and most favourable to the government.
“The company has experience in organising national-level government activities and projects, and proposed solutions that met the needs of the organisers.
“Due to the tight preparation time, an event management company needed to be appointed immediately. One of the main criteria for selecting a company was ensuring that it used at least 50% local Penang suppliers to promote Penang’s economic development.
“In fact, Chili Hotshoes Asia used 60% local suppliers for various services such as printing services, booth production services for governments and institutions, food seller services and related services,” Chow explained.
When asked about the number of attendees at the carnival, Chow said that a total of 285,000 people attended the three-day event, exceeding the expected target of 200,000.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Law Suun Ting