PH backtracking on local council elections, says Masing
KUCHING: Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing has accused Pakatan Harapan ( PH) of once again reneging on its election promise when backpedalling over the issue of whether to have election at the local council level.
Masing was referring to Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad’s comment on a TV station show that there should not be election for the line-up of councillors in any local council, fearing that it may produce the wrong result due to conf licts arising from possible emphasis on racial differences.
Masing claimed that he failed to understand why Dr Mahathir resorted to ‘ twisted logic’.
“Reneging on his promises or making U- turn seems to be the trademarks of PH and the Mahathir- led government. The rationale behind such decisions is quite acceptable. Take for example, in not keeping their promises Tun M said ‘ promises are not book suci ( holy book)’. So reneging on your promises is not a crime or sin. Making a U- turn on your decision is OK, after all we aren’t angel as ‘even angels’ make mistakes, Tun M said. Once a mistake is made and you know it, you turn back. There is nothing wrong with it,” said Masing.
Denial on what have been uttered or done is common with Dr Mahathir, Masing added.
“The classical one is this: When asked whether he put Anwar in jail, Mahathir replied: ‘ I didn’t. The court put Anwar in jail.’ Factually, he was correct. So how do you argue with Tun M’s logic? Logically he is correct, but the essence of the whole issue had been twisted by smart talk,” Masing pointed out.
When confirming that no election is to be implemented at local councils, the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia ( Bersatu) president also said that affairs in the rural and urban areas are different ( or peculiar) and therefore “this is more reason why election is not suitable for any local council”.
When contacted yesterday, Sarawak Minister of Local Government and Housing Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian said the state has its own local government ordinance and Sarawakians
Reneging on his promises or making U-turn seems to be the trademarks of PH and the Mahathir-led government. The rationale behind such decisions is quite acceptable. Take for example, in not keeping their promises Tun M said ‘promises are not book suci (holy book)’. So reneging on your promises is not a crime or sin. Making a U-turn on your decision is OK, after all we aren’t angel as ‘even angels’ make mistakes, Tun M said. Once a mistake is made and you know it, you turn back. There is nothing wrong with it. Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing, Deputy Chief Minister
decide their own destiny.
Like Masing, Dr Sim also described Dr Mahathir’s comment on local council election as a U-turn decision by PH.
“This is not the first and neither will it be the last U-turn by PH government. Sarawakians can see and determine for themselves who is sincere in safeguarding Sarawak. Sarawak has our own local government ordinance and Sarawakians decide our own destiny,” he argued.
Yesterday too, Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said his state is ready to implement local government elections and that the ball is now in the federal government’s court.
Chow said the Penang government had done the necessary steps over the last few years to restore local government election, but to no avail.
He said this after the Prime Minister announced that local council elections are off the cards as he warned it may lead to racial conf lict and a wide urban-rural divide.
PH’s manifesto in fact did not promise to restore local government elections though several Harapan lawmakers have long advocated for it.
Civil society groups and residential associations have also been calling for local council elections to be reinstated to allow the rakyat better representation at the local government level.
Such elections were last held in 1965. Back in 2012, the Penang state government had passed an enactment to hold local government elections. The Federal Court later ruled in 2014 that the Penang government did not have the jurisdiction to conduct such elections.