The Penang Chief Minister's House

The Penang Chief Minister's House (GPS: 5.40007, 100.3068) is the private residence of the Rt. Hon. Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of Penang. It is located on Pinhorn Road off Green Lane. Until it was sold to Mr Lim on 27 July, 2015 (based on date of the Sale & Purchase Agreement), the landlady was Miss Phang Li Koon, who bought the house for RM2.5 million in 2008. That same year Miss Phang got to know the Lims, and was especially close with Mrs Lim né Betty Chew.

Miss Phang had originally intended to let her brother use the house, and had carried out some renovations on it, but upon learning that the Lims need a place to stay, on account of termite problem at Sri Teratai, the Chief Minister's official residence, she decided to offer the house to the Lims for rent. The two parties entered into a tenancy agreement on 1 July, 2009, upon a monthly rental of RM5000 for a tenure of 3 years which ends on 30 June, 2012, but was extended for another three years, to 30 June, 2015. Miss Phang considers it an honour to be able to rent her house to the Chief Minister.

According to Miss Phang's statutory declaration, renting out to the Chief Minister came with headaches attached, as the house became a target for demonstrations, including mock funeral rites staged before the property. According to Miss Phang, molotov cocktails have also been tossed into the compound of the house. All these incidences, and the notoriety that the house has gained, made her feel uncomfortable to ever reoccupy it in the future.

By early 2012, before the expiry of the original tenancy agreement, Miss Phang had already made up her mind on letting go of the house. She spoke to Mrs Lim, telling her of her intention, and that if the Lims are willing, they can have the property for RM2.8 million. While the Lims were keen to buy the house, Mr Lim was worried whether he could afford the property, particularly if he were not re-elected as Chief Minister. It came to pass however, that Mr Lim was re-elected in the 2013 13th General Elections. Nevertheless, this being such an expensive property, Mrs Lim requested an option to buy it at a later date when they are in a better position to do so. This led to an agreement inked on 23 June, 2014, giving the Lims an option tenure to buy the house for RM2.8 million, and Mr Lim paying RM100,000 to seal the deal. Until that option is exercise, the Lims are allowed to continue renting the house.

Before the extension tenancy agreement expired on 30 June, 2015, Miss Phang had made up her mind to dispose of the property for good. It had given her undue stress from all the unwanted publicity the house attracted. So she approached Mrs Lim once again, and this time the Lims made progress on the matter by securing a housing loan, enabling the sale & purchase agreement to be signed on 28 July, 2015, and the full loan amount released by the back in October, 2015.

Rumah Ketua Menteri on Google Street View

Address

25, Pinhorn Road,
11600 Penang.

The Penang Chief Minister's House is on the map of Pinhorn Road

References