By Lian Cheng
KUCHING, Nov 7: The setting up of the Federal Village Management Council (MPKKP) could destabilise the Sarawak government at the grassroots.
Asajaya Assemblyman Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah claimed that the MPKKP was Pakatan Harapan federal government’s aim to create disunity among the people
“It is nothing else except to destabilise the state. Every government in the world will always advocate for unity. No politicians in the world would try to divide their own country. I can only see it here,” he told a press conference on the sideline of the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting here today.
The Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister believed that the introduction of MPKKP could cause leadership conflict in the longhouses, as having separate individuals in charge of the MPKKP and the JKKK (Village Development and Security Committee) is akin to having two longhouse headmen.
“They already know that there is already a system here. A good system of administration, the JKKK. Why must you create another JKKK in the longhouse?”
When asked if the federal government was attempting to take over the Sarawak government at the expense of the unity of Sarawakians, he agreed that can be the case.
He said the Pakatan Harapan-led federal government knows that Gabungan Parti Sarawak’s (GPS) strength is in the rural areas, and that Pakatan setting up the MPKKP was to break its rural dominance.
On a different note, Abdul Karim said Kota Sentosa assemblyman Chong Chieng Jen was not the first lawmaker whose time was cut short when debating in DUN.
“The way I see it, he seems to be glorifying himself trying to be the first here, the first one there. He was given the opportunity to speak up and he did not use the opportunity wisely.
“So the speaker has got his rights, within his power provided under the standing order to stop him,” he continued.
Chong, when debating the Sarawak Budget 2020 today, claimed to be the first Sarawak DUN member to have his time cut short in the august House.
The Democratic Action Party (DAP) lawmaker was only eight minutes into his debate, out of 20 minutes allocated, when DUN Speaker Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar made a ruling under Standing Order 32(1) to disallow Chong from continuing his debate speech.
“Chong tried to describe the Sarawak Budget 2020 as a ‘hot air’ budget because the latter tried to divert the attention.
“Chong knew that he would be disturbed by other lawmakers for the speech made in 2017 DUN sitting, promising that if Pakatan were to come into power, it would return to Sarawak 20 per cent oil and gas royalty and 50 per cent tax collected.
“Knowing fully well that he is going to be disturbed, he came out with that kind of strategy to create anger or to provoke. He has achieved that, then he got stop half way,” Abdul Karim opined. — DayakDaily
