KUCHING, August 2: Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) president Datuk Seri Ting King Sing has asserted that Pakatan Harapan (PH) including DAP has no ground to call for local government elections in Sarawak because the federal coalition itself has failed to do so in the states they control including Penang and Selangor.
He said PH has promised council elections for years and it was listed in their general election manifesto but until today, but they could not even achieve it in the states such as Penang and Selangor which are under PH administration for years.
Tiong said this to rebut Bukit Assek assemblyperson Irene Chang who criticised Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) for refusing to conduct local government elections.
“Chang’s logic is to restore local government elections on the basis that taxpayers have the right to choose competent city councillors to serve in urban planning and developing public facilities. But their talk of giving this power to the people have not even materialised in the state governments that they have governed for years.
“With Penang and Selangor failing to implement local government elections, PH has no authority or ground to call for the same in Sarawak. PH is merely scooping up the same swill heavily seasoned with their usual propaganda to gain political mileage and further their own agenda.
“PH should spend their time and energy performing actual public service to the rakyat instead of provoking issues,” Tiong said in a statement today.
Meanwhile, Tiong who is also Bintulu MP pointed out that PH has also violated their own election manifesto by making political appointments for positions in public institutions and government-linked companies.
“In the case of appointing chairpersons to the MACC and Election Commission, they had bypassed parliamentary select committee on the appointments, despite PH’s many pledges of ‘institutional reforms’.
“In Sarawak, John Brian Anthony was appointed as chairman of the Bintulu Port Authority and Hew Kuan Yau as Chief exectuive of the Malaysia-China Business Council.
“Even Lim Guan Eng’s own former assistant Jeffrey Chew Gim Eam was rewarded with the Penang Port Commission’s chairman post.
“Chang should be the one making apologies to the rakyat for making so many U-turns in their election promises by appointing so many under-qualified persons to head public posts,” said Tiong. — DayakDaily
