GEORGE TOWN: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has agreed to provide funding to help Penang cushion the impact of the global economic downturn.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state had appealed for RM500mil but was not sure how much would be approved.
“I personally spoke to the Deputy Prime Minister outside Parliament recently and he promised to channel some aid to us,” he told a press conference at the investPenang office yesterday.
He also said Penang had started a RM10mil fund to retrain retrenched workers and provide opportunities for them by developing the state’s unused land so that they would have a place to do business.
“However, this amount is not enough. We need federal funding,” he said.
“The manufacturing industry, especially, will feel the greatest impact of the economic downturn. We want to ensure that there are enough jobs for all if there is any retrenchment or downsizing.”
Lim later announced investPenang executive committee chairman Datuk Lee Kah Choon’s appointment as work commissioner for the state’s special committee to monitor any retrenchment in the state and to hold discussions with multinational companies.
“The committee will also check on the number of foreign workers currently in the state,” Lim added.
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