Guan Eng got his man at last!

TONGUES will not stop wagging even when former dep sec of Gerakan Lee Kah Choon quit the party to serve DAP Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng as director of the Penang Development Corporation and investPenang.

When the CM offered him the post, and which he accepted, Lee came under fire from all sides. BN Chairman and PM Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Gerakan advisor Tan Sri Dr Lim Keng Yeik and Acting President Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon all chorussed their dismay and disagreements.

Even DAP Chairman Karpal Singh spoke against the appointment. It was unbecoming for the DAP CM to offer the important post to a Gerakan card-carrying member - this was the message from the DAP strongman.

In offering the post to Lee, Guan Eng must have thrashed out whatever issues that could have surfaced. It was also apparent that both leaders were trying out new grounds in state administration, one that other states within the Pakatan Rakyat are watching closely.

There was no way Lee could serve the state of Penang, unless he part company with the party he claimed to be loyal to. When he did so, it must have been because he loves Penang more, and not because he loves Gerakan less.

It would seem a bit naive for Lee to think that his political masters would allow him to serve their bitter rival. Guan Eng was probably trying out something new too, and found resistance from in and outside the party. In any case, the CM did get his man, albeit not without some public display of 'negotiations.'