Lim Guan Eng shows Najib the right stuff

Penang gets its numbers right

Penang has just received another feather on its cap. In its latest report on Penang released this month, the auditor-general lauded the state government for producing sound and healthy financial standing for the year 2009. Calling the state’s financial condition "baik" (good), the report noted that the state authorities had exercised prudent expenditure, which was crowned by a financial statement that was professionally furnished with comprehensive documentation.

"With a good financial standing, the state government has been able to provide its people with services and contributions that are more effective," the auditor-general said in the latest annual report for the state.

The tone of the report must have come as music to the ears of Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, a qualified professional accountant and graduate in Economics from Monash University. Lavishing praises on the state’s finance officer, Datuk Farizan Darus, Lim attributed Penang’s strengthened financial condition to new budgeting procedures the state has adopted. These include the introduction of line-item accounting, outcome-based budgeting, open tender system and risk management.

What does it all mean in hard numbers? According to the state’s balance sheet, the state’s total consolidated funds at the end of 2009 came up to about RM1.1 billion, a 7.4% increase from the RM1.025 billion marked in 2008. What is significant about the accounts is that they reflect a record high in accumulated funds.

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