By Wilfred Pilo and Karen Bong
KUCHING, April 30: All Sarawak assemblypersons were informed of the required dress code through a notice and invitation prior to the opening ceremony of the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) yesterday.
Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Masing reminded Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen that “it is stated very clearly in the notice and invitation what attire one should wear for the opening ceremony of Sarawak DUN”.
Masing told DayakDaily that the notice and invitation stated that ministers, all elected representatives, senior government officials as well as the armed forces and police were required to wear the ‘ceremonial attire with all medals’, while the general public was to wear the ‘national attire or dark lounge suit and Muslims to put on the songkok’.
Masing was responding to a remark by Chong, who earlier today said it was not a big issue for not wearing the first uniform (ceremonial attire) for the opening ceremony.
Chong also said that there was no directive from DUN on the required dress code as opposed to Parliament, which requested that members of the Parliament put on ceremonial attire.
“It’s either YB Chong did not read or he just refuses to respect the Sarawak DUN. He has no respect for Sarawak!” Masing said.
Meanwhile, Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) Youth secretary-general Milton Foo said the reasons given by Chong on saving the people’s money and it (attire) being costly were not justifiable as all DAP MPs, including DAP MPs from Sarawak, wore their official attire during the opening of Parliament sitting.
Foo added that on June 23, 2011, it was also reported that Chong, who is also Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs-cum-Stampin MP, said, “It means the government has to spend tens of thousands of ringgit to provide the official attire for the 12 of us. The money could be better spent on more important matters”.
“To me, what Chong had said and the reasons for not wearing the attire show that DAP elected representatives here are showing disrespect to DUN and only subservient to the Parliament,” opined Foo. — DayakDaily
