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PENANG & SELANGOR

Four states came under opposition rule for the first time last March. For some, the change was a breath of fresh air. For others, it meant a new set of troubles.

The Straits Times

The going isn't easy, but these two states are making progress.

For the last two decades, Lim Guan Eng and Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim have been staking out different paths.

Lim, a fast-rising opposition politician, made a career of attacking the government and in 1998 was sentenced to 18 months in jail for sedition.

Khalid was the government's corporate wunderkind who presided over a state-owned investment fund that held controlling stakes in Malaysia's largest public-listed companies.

Today, both men are working side by side in the leadership of the country's emboldened opposition and stand at the forefront of political change here.

Last year's historic general election catapulted both men into powerful chief minister positions — Lim in Penang and Khalid in Selangor — in two of Malaysia's most economically powerful states, which have fallen into opposition hands.

Whether a two-party political system will take shape in Malaysia after decades of dominance by Barisan Nasional will depend on their performance, say opposition leaders and analysts.

How they navigate their states through the economic crisis will go a long way towards convincing Malaysia's increasingly discerning voters whether the opposition can become a viable government at the next election, which must be held before 2013.

One year into the job, both men concede that they haven't had it easy. With a hostile federal government and a civil service unaccustomed to serving new political masters, they say, pushing new policies through and injecting greater transparency in the business of government have been tough. There have also been potentially troubling distractions. Khalid is facing possible charges of abuse of power, raised by political opponents from Umno.

Both men told The Straits Times that they expect political mudslinging from BN to intensify in the coming months. “These are all tactics to put us off balance,” said Khalid.

Lim said: “The most important thing is to stay focused on delivering what we promised.”

Both men conceded that wading through the economic slump won't be easy because of the lack of federal government assistance and limited resources in their respective states. But they said the crisis also provided a rare opportunity for the opposition states to distinguish themselves.

“We are committed to open tenders and greater transparency, which is what Malaysians are demanding. As long as we deliver, the abuses on the other side will be more glaring,” said Lim.

For the moment, the mix of populist politics and pro-business style of governance pursued by the Penang and Selangor state administrations is showing results. Foreign direct investment in Penang hit RM6 billion last year compared with RM4.7 billion in 2007, while Selangor attracted RM11 billion in foreign direct investment last year, more than double the roughly RM5 billion it received in 2007.

Direct cash handouts have also endeared the two politicians to ordinary folk.

Lorry driver Bashir Mohamed Ali from Klang town said he likes Khalid's administration because there is no flaunting of wealth. “I hope they don't change and become arrogant like the former leaders,” he said.

BN leaders, however, believe that as the national economy worsens, such public euphoria will give way to the reality that only the federal government can bring development and provide jobs.

“They haven't made too many mistakes in the past year,” said a senior politician from MCA, a BN coalition member.

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