IPOH: Perak executive councillors need cars with higher capacity engines because they have to travel a lot.
Defending the state’s decision to buy the 2.4-litre Toyota Camry instead of the 2.0-litre model, state senior executive councillor Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham said the difference between the two models was only RM7,000.
“The 2.0 model is said to be underpowered. In our line of duty, we need to rush and travel around extensively,” he told a press conference on Tuesday.
Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin had on Dec 12 announced that the state government would upgrade its official cars from the Proton Perdana V6 to Toyota Camry for state executive councillors and ex-officios.
Nizar had cited the high cost of maintaining the Perdana cars as a reason for the change.
Ngeh also pointed out that the Toyota Camry was one of the cheapest imported cars at RM167,000 each.
“We are paying RM97,000 for each car and the balance of RM70,000 is taxes imposed by the Federal Government and so we are paying to the rakyat (people), not to Toyota.
“Because the Federal Government refused to exempt us from paying the taxes, the state is paying the money, which we hope will be channelled back to the rakyat,” he added.
Ngeh, who admitted that the state had initially declared that it would not change its fleet of Perdana cars, said the government later decided to make the change because its present fleet of Perdana cars kept going in and out of workshops.
SOURCE:thestar
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