We cannot transfer property: Lim
> Association not legal owner of Love Lane building
GEORGE TOWN: Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the Penang government is unable to transfer a property in Love Lane to the Penang Chinese Clans Association (PCCA).
Lim said his administration cannot do as it wishes by transferring the property to PCCA unless a legal connection is proven. As such, it sought documents from lawyers of PCCA in accordance with the law.
He said his administration does not intend to profit from the transfer of the Ghee Hin Society property, which has a backlog of unpaid assessment and quit rent, and is being held in the name of trustees who were deceased.
Lim said PCCA wanted the property to be transferred to it, claiming a connection with Ghee Hin through the ownership of another property, Meng Eng Soo, in Jalan Pintal Tali.
He said the state government is agreeable to the transfer and had agreed to confiscate the property and hand it to PCCA.
However, Lim said PCCA does not own the Jalan Pintal Tali property, held in the name of a different set of trustees who were also deceased.
“In other words, even though PCCA is operating Meng Eng Soo, it is not the legal owner.
“Legally, this changes the whole equation as the legal nexus of connected property ownership, with PCCA as the owner of Meng Eng Soo and by extension, the Love Lane property, is broken,” he said in a statement.
He asked why the state government was criticised and blamed when it was not the cause of the legal complication.
“An official letter was sent to PCCA setting out the RM1 nominal land premium to transfer the property, with a request for furnishing of documentation.”
Lim said the state government had decided that the matter be handled officially and strictly between PCCA lawyers and the Land Office.
“We believe that the transfer of property can still be effected through rational discussions with their lawyers, although it may take some time.”
When contacted, PCCA president Chang Wei Lu said he will address the issue during a dinner on Aug 11.
“I will explain everything then,” he said.