page_title: History of Penang
section_title: 1970 – 1990
hierarchical_section_title: History of Penang / Post-independence / 1970 – 1990
caption_attribution_description: English: Penang Bridge main span viewed from the roadway in Feb 2011.
context_page_description: The State of Penang, one of the most developed and urbanised Malaysian states, is located at the nation's northwest coast along the Malacca Strait. Unlike most Malaysian states, the history of modern Penang was shaped by British colonialism, beginning with the acquisition of Penang Island from the Sultanate of Kedah by the British East India Company in 1786. Developed into a free port, the city state was subsequently governed as part of the Straits Settlements, together with Singapore and Malacca; the state capital, George Town, briefly became the capital of this political entity between 1826 and 1832. By the end of the 19th century, George Town prospered and became one of the major entrepôts in Southeast Asia.
  During World War II, Penang was conquered and occupied by the Japanese Empire from 1941 to 1945. At the end of the war, Penang was also the first state in the Malay Peninsula to be liberated by the British, under Operation Jurist. The Straits Settlements was dissolved in the following year and Penang was merged into the Federation of Malaya.
context_section_description: In 1973, Gerakan joined Barisan Nasional, thus returning the Penang state government back into the hands of the ruling coalition.
  To revive Penang's economy, Lim Chong Eu created the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone and courted foreign multinational corporations for investments. Pioneer tax status was granted to multinational firms seeking to establish assembly plants within Bayan Lepas, which was formerly the rice bowl of Penang. Major electronic and engineering firms, including Motorola, Bosch, Hewlett-Packard and Hitachi, flocked in, setting up assembly plants within the area. Complemented by cheap labour, the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone, one of the major electronics manufacturing zones in Asia, grew to become the Silicon Valley of the East and was instrumental in pulling Penang out from its economic slump, greatly propelling the state's economy as one of the main economic powerhouses within Malaysia. To this day, manufacturing remains one of Penang's two largest economic sectors, contributing as much as 47.4% of Penang's GDP as of 2015.
  During Lim's tenure, several major infrastructure projects were completed. The Penang Bridge, then the longest bridge in Southeast Asia, was completed in 1985, thus providing for the first time a road link between Penang Island and the Malay Peninsula. More controversial was the 250 m (820 ft)-tall Komtar in George Town, to this day the tallest skyscraper in Penang. Launched in 1974 as part of his vision to reverse George Town's declining fortunes, Komtar was constructed in the expense of hundreds of shophouses, schools and temples, as well as whole streets, which were bulldozed for the project. However, instead of arresting George Town's decline, Komtar itself became a white elephant by the early 2000s.
  Meanwhile, in 1974, the Port of Penang was relocated from George Town to the town of Butterworth, directly across the Penang Strait, to allow for the berthing of larger container and cargo vessels. By then, the maritime traffic through Penang had been greatly diminished since the revocation of George Town's free port status, with increasing volumes of maritime trade being directed towards Port Klang near Kuala Lumpur instead.
  Throughout the 1970s and 80s, the Malaysian federal government proceeded with the rapid development of Kuala Lumpur and nearby Port Klang, by controlling investments in communication, transport, education and health. Kuala Lumpur soon outstripped George Town as Malaysia's largest city and financial centre, while Port Klang quickly became the country's busiest seaport. Consequently, Penang began to suffer considerable brain drain as younger Penangites started emigrating for better employment opportunities.
  In 1974, the George Town City Council was merged with the Penang Island Rural District Council to form the Penang Island Municipal Council, while the five local authorities within Seberang Perai, including the Butterworth and Bukit Mertajam town councils, were merged into the Seberang Perai Municipal Council. By then, local elections, suspended since 1965, became a thing of the past, with the municipal councillors being appointed by the Penang state government ever since. The merger of the local governments on Penang Island also led to a decades-long dispute over George Town's city status.
  In the 1990 State Elections, Lim Chong Eu as the incumbent lost the Padang Kota constituency to Lim Kit Siang of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), forcing him into retirement. Although Barisan Nasional remained in power, Lim Chong Eu was succeeded by Koh Tsu Koon as the Chief Minister of Penang.
caption: Completed in 1985, the Penang Bridge was then the longest bridge in Southeast Asia.
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