GEORGE TOWN: A former Gerakan assemblyman claims that three questions that he raised in the previous state assembly session were copied word-for-word and raised again by a DAP assemblyman in the current session.

Former Datuk Keramat assemblyman Ong Thean Lye said yesterday he was shocked, but flattered, when he discovered on Monday night that Sungai Pinang assemblyman Koid Teng Guan's questions were exactly the same as the ones he posed at the assembly last November.

“It shows that the present assemblyman either does not have his own ideas or that my questions must be of high quality.

“We don’t know if there are more questions that have been copied by others for this session,” he told reporters outside the state assembly hall.

Ong had raised questions on the Penang monorail project, the location of the Natural Gas Vehicle pumping station to be set up on the island and the allocation for the Sports Foundation Fund each year.

Ong, accompanied by former state assemblymen Wong Mun Hoe and Goh Kheng Sneah and other Gerakan members, then carried a banner which read “DAP’s 'Cat' Government = Copy Cat Government”.

In an immediate response, Koid, who said the questions were his, added that they were prepared by his five assistants after his discussion with them on issues to bring up.

“I didn’t know the issues had been raised before. I also don’t know how they can be identical. My assistants prepared the questions and I typed them out.

“However, Ong should not make such a big thing out of it. After all, the issues are still pending,” he said, adding that he had submitted 20 questions for the assembly.

-THE STAR-