DAPSY Sabah pays courtesy calls on seven ministers, deputies
KOTA KINABALU: Forty five young party members of Sabah DAPSY (Democratic Action Party Socialist Youth) led by Luyang assemblyman, Phoong Jin Zhe, paid visits to the various ministries and Parliament House in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya recently.
Their visit was warmly received by the seven ministers and deputies as they engage in discourses on various matters.
“This is definitely a rare and rewarding experience for many of them, especially those visiting Putrajaya and Parliament House for the first time, said Phoong, in a statement here yesterday.
The leaders of Sabah DAPSY responsible for the organisation of the trip, include Sabah DAPSY deputy chief, Max Million Lee, DAPSY Sabah secretary, Puan Mei Chan, KK DAPSY chief, George Wong, Tawau DAPSY chief, Philip Yap, and DAPSY Sandakan chief, Kent Chin, and others.
The Sabah DAPSY delegation’s visit was primarily to participate in the 2018 National DAPSY Congress held in Serdang on December 2.
In order to make the itinerary more holistic and give opportunities for the delegates to acquire more insight and information, Kota Kinabalu MP, Chan Foong Hin, and Phoong were able to arrange meetings with seven DAP ministers and their deputies.
Phoong said, this was not the first time he had arranged such visits. In August last year, together with DAPSY Sabah, he arranged a visit to the Penang state government and Parliament House, and even visited the then Penang Chief Minister, Lim Guan Eng. And, a year later, the same delegation paid a visit to the the Federal Ministry of Finance in Putrajaya and its minister, Lim Guan Eng, who is also secretary general of DAP.
Phoong said, he was delighted to see many of the young delegates enthusiastically raising questions to the ministers and deputies, including airing many constructive opinions and criticisms of some government policies. He believes that young party members from the ruling party must always be opinionated on government policies and to make every effort to relay their opinions and constructive criticism to the government. He emphasized that youths of the ruling party must be prepared to propose policies to improve the people’s quality of life.
“Through this kind of visits, I believe it will provide an invaluable experience for many of our young comrades, as it is bound to increase their understanding of various policies of the government. Young members of the DAPSY must master the ability to analyze, criticize and recommend policies in order to contribute to the country,” Phoong said.
The delegation visited Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, Chong Chieng Jen, Deputy Minister of Defence, Liew Chin Tong, Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change, Yeo Bee Yin, Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry, Dr. Ong Kian Ming, Deputy Minister of Education, Teo Nie Ching, Finance Minister, Lim Guan Eng and Minister of Transport, Anthony Loke.
Phoong also revealed that the delegation discussed with Chong about the high prices of goods in Sabah and how to reduce them, engaged with Liew Chin Tong on how to improve the security and defence of Sabah, raised with Yeo Bee Yin on the high electricity bill and lack of electricity supply in parts of Sabah; and apprised Dr. Ong Kian Ming on the lack of industrialization in Sabah which had indirectly resulted in the rising cost of living, and the issue of brain drain in Sabah.
The delegation also talked with Teo Nie Ching on educational issues, such as the recognition of UEC, improvement on quality of education, and the dilapidated state of Sabah schools, and with Anthony Loke they shared about the reorganization of bus services in Kota Kinabalu and the extension of Sandakan airport runway project.
They also talked to Lim Guan Eng about the tax revenue sharing for Sabah, the need for more resources to develop the large-scale plans in Sabah, and the financial state of the country. Although Lim was visibly exhausted from his hectic schedule, he nevertheless answered their questions patiently.
Phoong also posted on his Facebook page, “I personally told the Finance Minister that Kota Kinabalu is in dire need to build a modern public transportation system as this is the hope of Kota Kinabalu citizens. We must strive to make some achievements during this term as the ruling government.”
After listening to my explanation, Lim nodded in agreement and said, “I will continue to follow up and negotiate with all parties, in order to ensure that Kota Kinabalu will witness the progress of public transportation in the shortest possible time.”
Besides meeting the various ministers and deputies, the delegation also visited Parliament House and exchanged views with DAP member of parliament for Iskandar Puteri, Lim Kit Siang, who shared his political journey and encouraged the youths to contribute to the country.
Also present were Tenom member of parliament, Noorita Sual, and Senator Adrian Lasimbang.