KUCHING, March 30: Julian Tan, special assistant to Sarawak DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen urges the government to ease the appeal process for those facing RM10,000 fines for violating Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs).
The Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) leader in a statement said currently, the only way to file an appeal is to be physically present in the district health office to fill up the form.
He noted that submission of the appeal can only be done during office hours thus adding an unnecessary burden on those when jobs are hard to come by.
“The process of appealing should be seamless, paperless and contactless as much as possible, thus serving its prime objective to curb the spread of Covid-19.
“Let the filing be done online, including submitting relevant supporting documents. Everything is now traceable digitally, especially official documents.
“(Besides), some of the locations for filing appeals can only handle a certain number of violators’ presence,” he said, adding the situation could get complicated and confusing when there is a sudden influx of visitors.
Tan who is also a former Stampin MP noted that some violators had no idea what to do and needed to enquire at the counter many times.
From his experience in helping them with the appeal process, Tan noted the violators need to prepare the original compound slip and any documents that can verify their current financial condition.
These include payslips or a printout of Bantuan Prihatin National (BPN) or Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) status slip to strengthen their appeal. — DayakDaily
