100 city folk protest against conduct of anti-rabies ops team
KUCHING: About 100 local people held a peaceful protest outside the police’s one- stop centre at Jalan Simpang Tiga here yesterday, as a show of their dissatisfaction over the conduct by the enforcement team of the anti-rabies operations.
According to the group’s representative Danny Chung, a police report had also been lodged for investigation to be carried out on the State Disaster Management Committee and Padawan Municipal Council ( MPP) regarding allegation about the enforcement team having abused their power and trespassed private properties while conducting the anti-rabies exercise.
Chung said according to several pet owners, members of the enforcement team had requested permission to enter the private properties with the aim to vaccinate their dogs but instead, they tranquilised the animals.
It is learnt that one of the protesters also lodged a police report, claiming that the enforcement team had trespassed into a factory in Kota Samarahan and tranquilised the factory owner’s dogs on April 10 and 11 – around 5pm on each day.
The complainant also reported that there was neither identification document not warrant being presented by the enforcement team, prior to them tranquilising a total of five pet dogs within the compound of the premises.
“The authorities concerned must investigate the incidents thoroughly as trespassing people’s private properties and tranquilising their dogs within their compounds are unlawful, morally unjust and unethical,”
The authorities concerned must investigate the incidents thoroughly as trespassing people’s private properties and tranquilising their dogs within their compounds are unlawful, morally unjust and unethical.
said Chung.
Moreover, he also questioned the need for members of the enforcement team to carry heavy firearms during the anti-rabies operations, in that such scene only created unnecessary anxiety among the residents, as well as risk endangering public order and security.
Meanwhile Deputy Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Chong Chieng Jen’s special assistant Abdul Aziz Isa, who was also present at the protest to support the local citizens, called upon the Sarawak government to be transparent to the public with regard to the anti-rabies operations, reiterating that tranquilising dogs within any private property would be considered as ‘ trespassing’.
“The police should take action as soon as possible, and should not prolong the issue as the longer this issue is prolonged without investigation, the greater chaos and panic it would create among the public,” said Abdul Aziz.
In his remarks Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii, who was also at the police one-stop centre here, said he had spoken to Deputy Minister of Health Dr Lee Boon Chye about writing an official letter to the State Disaster Management Committee to express its concern about the allegations of trespassing, and also to evaluate whether or not such allegations would warrant an independent investigation to be launched.
According to Dr Yii, the national guards are now assisting the antirabies operation enforcement teams in view of the rabies outbreak in Sarawak having been declared as a ‘Level II Disaster’.
“At the end of the day, while we support all efforts to curb the rabies outbreak, we must also follow the proper SOP (standard operating procedure) that are agreed upon by different parties,” he said, stressing that the SOP must be humane and would not cause any distress or raise security concerns among the residents.
Danny Chung, representative of protesters