Just after I blog on the case of councillors breaking the very law they are entrusted to uphold, today's Berita Harian reported the extend of the double standard.
For those who are not versed in Bahasa Malaysia, the report was entitled "Trader loss RM20000 MPK pull down store". In summary the report says: A nasi campur (rice seller) and roti canai seller was upset because an extension to his stall was pulled down by the Klang Municipal Council (MPK) in August after given only 2 days' notice. His frustration increased because a satay stall owned by Port Klang State Assemblyman, Datuk Zakaria, which was not licenced, not far away was not penalised. The stall was only about 500 meters from the luxurious bangalow owned by Zakaria which gave rise to the controversy because it was build without the MPK's permission. Datuk Teh Kim Poh, MCA Klang division leader and MPK councillor at a fund-raising function for the stall owner, said that he was surprised as no action was taken against Satay House premise which was located near Mohamad Salim's stall. Satay House has no building plan nor a business license but MPK turned a blind eye."
This incident confirmed the double-standard yardstick used by the Municipal councillors. It also confirms the poor public perceptions of government department. No wonder politicians are jostling for political positions at branch, divisional, state and national level. Once you are in office, the world is yours for the taking.
The action of the MCA man although is commendable, smacks of political motives. The incident was occured in August, why is it that the fund-raising was only carried out last night, a good two months from the incident? The fund-raising was conveniently held after the controversy surrounding Datuk Zakaria arose. The timing is too coincidental.
Why was Satay House allowed to operate when it was not approved? When did the MCA man knew about the illegality of the stall and if he did know, did he inform the Council president? What action was taken, if any, by the Council president if he was told about it?
It seems that more and more questions arose from this saga. I hope PM Badawi or the 'acting' PM Najib will hold those responsible accountable and enforce some transparency in the government machinery. After all, this was their platform for the last general election. The Barisan National coalition owes the public some explanations.
No comments:
Post a Comment