Dr Yii appalled at Penguang’s defence of directive
KUCHING: Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii was appalled at a recent statement by Assistant Minister of Local Government Datu Dr Penguang Manggi l regarding the direct ive to prohibit the Ketua Kaum (village chiefs) and Ketua Masyarakat ( community leaders ) from a t t e n d i n g p r o g r amme s not organised by the state government.
Peng ua ng h ad s a id the Sarawak government issued the directive because the federal government had disal lowed Gabungan Pa r t i Sa rawak ( GPS) elected representatives and state government officers from at tending government primary and secondary school functions.
Peng ua ng d id not only defend the state government’s directive but also mentioned a few federal departments such as the Information Department and Fire and Rescue Department ( Bomba) who were reported to have refused in assisting elected representatives from GPS.
Fo l l owi n g P e n g u a n g ’ s statement, Dr Yii said he checked with Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching to verify whether such directive did come from the federal government but was informed that there was no such thing.
“Fac t o f the mat t e r is, such di rective it sel f f rom the beginning i s not only unreasonable, undemocratic but also unconstitutional as it infringes the rights of freedom of association of these community leaders, as well as limits the ability of these community leaders to better serve the people that are under their responsibility.
“There are many initiatives done by the democratical ly elected Pakatan Harapan ( PH) federal ministers and ministries that are done for the benefit of the people, including to explain government policies and how they will benefit the people, and also to hear feedback and input from these community leaders in order to better carry out their responsibility and formulate better policies that will benefit the community as a whole,” he added.
Dr Yii said the new culture practised by the PH government is to have more engagement with the people to better understand the issues on the ground, to better serve the people.
He said the common excuse used by GPS leaders to defend such directive includes stating that the community leaders in the state are appointed and paid monthly allowances by the Sarawak government; thus are bound to the state government.
“First and foremost, even if they are paid by the state government, that money and resources do not belong to the state government but belong to the people. The state government collects taxes from the people as revenue to pay these community leaders and thus, the responsibility of these community leaders are to their people, and to act as a link between the government of the day, whether federal or state, and the people under their care,” he said.
And if everyone follows the logic of the state government to restrict village chiefs and community leaders in the state, Dr Yii wonders whether it means that federal departments including the hospital, police, fire department that are funded by the federal government do not have the responsibility to serve the state’s leaders or those being paid by the state government.
“It does not work that way and I am saddened that the people including the community leaders are caught in between political games played by the state government. There are issues that are beyond partisan politics including the interest of the people, and that principle should be upheld no mat ter what,” he emphasised.
With that, Dr Yii hopes that the state government will reconsider the directive and find a common ground to work together with the democratically elected PH government for the interest of the people and allow these community leaders to better serve their people including through bet ter engagement with different initiatives by the federal government.