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Penang Island City Council
Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang
Coat of arms
Overview
Established	1857; 167 years ago (1857) (as the George Town Municipal Council)
Polity	George Town
Leader	Mayor Rajendran P. Anthony (since 2023)
Appointed by	Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow
Responsible to	Penang state government
Annual budget	RM466.31 million (2025)
Headquarters	City Hall Esplanade Road George Town
Website	www.mbpp.gov.my/en/

The Penang Island City Council (abbrev. MBPP) is the local government that administers the city of George Town, which includes the entirety of Penang Island. The city council, which has jurisdiction over an area of 306 km (118 sq mi), falls under the purview of the Penang state government.

The Penang Island City Council is responsible for urban planning, heritage preservation, public health, sanitation, waste management, traffic management, environmental protection, building control, social and economic development, and general maintenance of urban infrastructure. In addition, the local government, in a joint effort with Rapid Penang, runs a free shuttle bus service within the heart of George Town.

The headquarters of the city government is located within the City Hall in George Town, which had served as the seat of the George Town City Council until 1976. It also has offices within Komtar, the tallest skyscraper in the city.

History

A committee of assessors for George Town was established in 1800, making it the first local government to be established within British Malaya. The committee, which consisted of British and local Asian ratepayers, was tasked with the valuation of property within the new settlement.

In 1857, the George Town Municipal Commission was officially established. It consisted of five members and was led by the Resident-Councillor of Penang. Three of the Municipal Commissioners were to be elected by expatriate ratepayers and Straits-born British citizens, making the Municipal Commission the first, albeit partially, elected local government within British Malaya. However, the local elections were abolished by 1913.

In 1951, the British colonial authorities reintroduced municipal elections of nine of the fifteen municipal commissioners for George Town, the first municipal council in Malaya to do so. For the municipal elections, George Town was divided into three wards - Tanjung, Kelawei and Jelutong. By 1956, George Town became the first municipality in Malaya to have a fully elected local government. Five wards were created to elect one councillor each year, while the president of the municipal council was voted from amongst the councillors.

On 1 January 1957, George Town became a city by a royal charter granted by Queen Elizabeth II, becoming the first city in the Federation of Malaya, and by extension, Malaysia. George Town remained Malaysia's only city (other than Singapore between 1963 and 1965) until 1972, when Kuala Lumpur was also granted city status. The first mayor of George Town was D. S. Ramanathan, a Labour Party politician.

In 1965, the Malaysian federal government suspended local elections as a result of the Indonesian Confrontation. The George Town City Council was at the time the richest local council in the country, with annual revenue almost double that of the Penang state government. In response to allegations of maladministration and misconduct, a Royal Commission of Enquiry was set up by the federal government under Senator Athi Nahappan, while the functions of the city council were temporarily transferred to the Chief Minister of Penang in 1966.

The Royal Commission cleared the George Town City Council of the allegations of corruption and recommended the restoration of municipal elections. However, this was never carried out. Instead, in 1971, the two local councils on Penang Island - the George Town City Council and the Penang Island Rural District Council, the latter of which administered the rural southwest of Penang Island - were taken over by the Penang state government. In addition, the state government, controlled at the time by Gerakan and led by Lim Chong Eu as the chief minister, also decided to continue the suspension of Penang's local government elections.

In 1974, both the George Town City Council and the Penang Island Rural District Council were merged to form the Penang Island Municipal Council. This act also resulted in the consolidation of Penang's local governments into two local governments, each administering one halve of the state - Penang Island and Seberang Perai.

Controversy over city status

George Town's royal charter provided that:

"... the said Municipality of George Town shall on the First Day of January in the year of Our Lord One thousand nine hundred and fifty seven and forever thereafter be a city and shall be called and styled the CITY OF GEORGE TOWN instead of the Municipality of George Town and shall thenceforth have all such rank, liberties, privileges and immunities as are incident to a City."

With the legal entity for George Town being superseded by the merger of the local governments in 1974, the Malaysian federal government was of the view that George Town no longer existed as a city. The city of George Town was omitted in federal government publications and maps.

Despite this, most citizens of Penang contend that George Town is still a city to this day, as George Town's city status was technically never revoked. Several federal and municipal ordinances and by-laws still in use today refer to the City of George Town, such as the City of George Town Ordinance 1957 and the City of George Town Liquefied Petroleum Gases By-Laws 1971. According to Penang Heritage Trust (PHT) trustee, Anwar Fazal, a lawyer by profession, George Town "legally has been and is still a city because the City of George Town Ordinance 1957 was never repealed".

In addition, Clause 3 of the Local Government (Merger of the City Council of George Town and the Rural District Council of Penang Island) Order 1974, which was sanctioned by the then Penang state government, stated that

"... the status of the City of George Town as a city shall continue to be preserved and maintained and shall remain unimpaired by the merger hereby effected."

The clause above implies that, although the legal entity for George Town had been superseded, George Town's city status remains intact and unchanged by the merger of the local governments.

In 2008, the newly-elected Penang state government, announced that they would revive the commemorations of George Town's city status from 1 January 2009.

Expansion of city limit

In 2015, the Malaysian federal government elevated the Penang Island Municipal Council into the present-day Penang Island City Council. In effect, the jurisdiction of the city of George Town was expanded to cover an area of 305.77 km (118.06 sq mi), encompassing the entirety of Penang Island as well as five of the surrounding islets. This also makes George Town the only city in Malaysia to be conferred city status twice, first by Queen Elizabeth II, and then by the Malaysian federal government. Patahiyah binti Ismail was subsequently installed as the Mayor of Penang Island, the first female mayor in Penang's history.

List of mayors

Mayors of George Town

Mayors of Penang Island

Organisation

The city council is headed by the Mayor of Penang Island, who is assisted by the City Secretary and 24 councillors. The mayor's term lasts for two years, while each of the 24 councillors is appointed for a one-year term by the Penang state government.

22 of the councillors are selected by the component parties of the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition. Of these, 10 are appointed by the Democratic Action Party (DAP), eight by the People's Justice Party (PKR) and four from the National Trust Party (Amanah). Following the 2023 state election that saw the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) forming an unprecedented political alliance with PH, the former is allocated one councillor post as well. Penang-based non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are allocated the remaining councillor post to allow for the participation in policy-making by civil societies.

The current mayor of Penang Island is Rajendran P. Anthony, who assumed office in 2023, whilst Cheong Chee Hong holds the positions of City Secretary and chief digital officer.

Councillors

As of 1 August 2024, the councillors of the Penang Island City Council are as listed below.

Departments

The internal organisation of the city council comprises the following departments and units.

Public finance

See also

• Seberang Perai City Council

References

1. Edmund Lee (11 September 2024). "MBPP's Budget 2025 Focuses on Cleanliness and Sustainability". Buletin Mutiara. Retrieved 3 November 2024.
2. ^ "Background". Official Portal of City Council of Penang Island (MBPP). 9 October 2015. Archived from the original on 1 May 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
3. Koay Su Lin, Steven Sim (2014). "A history of local elections in Penang Part I: Democracy Comes Early". Penang Monthly. Archived from the original on 18 September 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
4. Koay, Su Lin (October 2016). "Penang: The Rebel State (Part Two)". Penang Monthly. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
5. ^ Koay, Su Lin (December 2014). "A history of local elections in Penang Part II: A legacy to protect". Penang Monthly. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
6. ^ Koay, Su Lyn (April 2014). "When Labour ruled the council". Penang Monthly. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
7. "The Snuffing Out of Local Democracy in Malaysia". Saravanamuttu. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
8. Goh Ban Lee, Report of the Local Elections Working Group, 20 April 1999
9. Ooi, Kee Beng (February 2011). "The day George Town grew up". Penang Monthly. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
10. ^ "Where is George Town?". Malay Mail. 4 April 2015. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
11. Ooi, Kee Beng (January 2015). "George Town – From city to municipality to culture centre". Penang Monthly. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
12. "By Laws". Official Portal of Penang Island City Council (MBPP). 9 October 2015. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
13. "Penang forgetting its history". The Star. 1 January 2007. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
14. Goh, Ban Lee (February 2010). "Remember the city status of George Town". Penang Monthly. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
15. "Penang to boost Georgetown brand starting with city status on Jan 1; on July 18th congressman Timothy Jameson visited the region". Malaysian Insider. Archived from the original on 6 April 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
16. "Penang island gets city status".
17. "George Town meliputi 'pulau', jelas Datuk Bandar" (PDF). Buletin Mutiara. 1 May 2015.
18. "Council president now Penang's first mayor". Retrieved 1 April 2015.
19. "梹馬華分會反駁黃添壽市長指摘".
20. "Patahiyah is mayor of Penang Island". 9 April 2015.
21. "New MBPP mayor Maimunah takes oath of office". 4 July 2017.
22. "Yew to replace Maimunah as MBPP mayor". 17 January 2018.
23. "Organisation Chart". Official Portal of Penang Island City Council (MBPP). 9 October 2015. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
24. "Newbies pledge to give their best - Community | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
25. ^ Opalyn Mok (27 June 2018). "Putrajaya asked Penang's help to return third vote, says state exco". Malay Mail. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
26. "New list of city councillors to be tabled on Jan 4 - Nation | The Star Online". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
27. ^ "Portal Rasmi Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang - Profil Ahli Majlis". www.mbpp.gov.my. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
28. Nataf Zulkifli, Watawa (1 August 2024). "Empat angkat sumpah sebagai Ahli Majlis MBPP, lantikan hingga 31 Disember". Buletin Mutiara (in Malay). Retrieved 2 August 2024.
29. "Penang Island City Council". iDirectory of the Penang State Government. Penang State Government.
30. "Laporan Sosioekonomi Negeri Pulau Pinang 2023". Department of Statistics Malaysia (in Malay). August 2024. ISSN 2600-9854.
31. "Laporan Sosioekonomi Negeri Pulau Pinang 2022". Department of Statistics Malaysia. August 2023. ISSN 2600-9854.
32. "Laporan Sosioekonomi Negeri Pulau Pinang 2021". Department of Statistics Malaysia. August 2022. ISSN 2600-9854.

External links

• Official website

• Local government in Penang
• City councils in Malaysia
• George Town, Penang
• Penang Island