Showing posts with label Chinese community. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinese community. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 10

Are the interests and needs of the Ibans neglected?

According to the Borneo Post today (9 Aug 2011), Second Finance Minister Wong Soon Koh pledged he would dedicate more time working for the Chinese community by going down to the ground.


Speaking in a dialogue with the Sibu Division United Chinese Association (UCA) on Sunday night, Wong is also Minister of Public Health and Environment said he wanted to ensure the needs and interests of the Chinese community were not neglected by bridging the gap between the people and the government.


“It is for this reason I shall go on tour of duty in towns throughout Sarawak to meet the Chinese community,” he said, pointing out that the dialogue in Sibu was his first stop.


“I started with Sibu because it is my hometown and I have a deep affection for the place I grew up,” he said.


In the process of helping the Chinese in Sibu, it is hoped that Wong, who is the assemblyman for Bawang Assan, will not neglect the needs and interests of the Ibans in the constituency.


In the last election Wong’s victory was due on the main to Iban voters, despite the fact that they have been neglected for the last 47 years or so.


Like other Chinese voters in Chinese majority constituencies, the majority of Bawan Assan Chinese voted against him. Wong won by a 1,808-vote majority.


Bawan Assan has 5,834 Iban voters as compared with 10,001 Chinese voters.


During the campaign for the Sibu by-election in May last year, we found out that the majority of Iban longhouses lack basic amenities such as medical care, water and electricity supplies and good roads.

Friday, April 15

The inside story of SUPP

By a former SUPP member

WHY SUPP DESERVES TO BE PUNISHED I am writing this from outside Sarawak as I migrated with my family to Australia last year.

I spent most of my working life in Miri and Kuching and as a businessmen, was forced to socialise with SUPP and other political leaders.

I got to be quite close to them, and became one of their “supporters” who was “required” to “help” during elections. I would like to appeal to all the voters, especially the Chinese voters, to vote for the opposition and not the SUPP.

Let give just relate some of the home truths about SUPP

1. SUPP under George Chan (GC) is not working for the Chinese but Taib Mahmud (TM). Forget the words but look at the action. TM took away the Kuching Mayor’s post and gave it to a civil servant (died) without consulting SUPP.

Before the announcement I was at a dinner with George Chan, Lee Kim Shim and Alan Sim (AS) and GC hinted that AS would make an excellent mayor for Kuching. AS was smiling so hard that you would have guessed that he was 100% sure that he would be the mayor. But TM simply gave it to someone else and GC could not do anything about it.


2. When the 2006 state elections came about, I was asked to “donate” to SUPP campaign in Kuching. My Miri branch manager told me that the SUPP Miri people (Andy Chia, Datuk Wee and gang) “asked” for my company vehicles to be “loan” to them for their campaign. When the issue of land lease came up, GC told us in a dinner function that he will “speak” to CM and CM would make an announcement at a unity dinner in Kuching.

I was forced to buy 3 tables at this dinner at Crowne Plaza. I was sitting a meter table away from the VIP table and I saw GC begging the CM to announce that he would renew the lease. CM just told GC, in front of everyone, I will announce in my own time.

Can you image the SUPP president’s shame? In front of the Chinese community, he cannot even get the CM to make a “hint” about the land lease. After the elections, I was having dinner with GC’s supporters in Miri and he told in a serious tone that CM refused to make the announcement because he wanted to “punish” the Chinese/SUPP for making “too much noise?

This meant that TM had already destroyed Iban unity by splitting PRS/PBDS into two factions and he wanted the Chinese to be the same while he prepared his children to come in and take over. This man even hinted that TM only dared to do this because GC was the SUPP president. GC cannot stand up to TM on any issue. He just gives in on every crucial issue. Why? I will tell you later.


3. During the 2006 state elections, one of SUPP’s biggest financial contributors, Ting Chek Si (TCS), a tycoon from Sibu, was not selected to defend his Meradong seat. His crime? TCS was in a business dispute with TM’s brother over the Sanyan group of companies.

TCS has sued TM’s brother for “oppression” and revealed that he gave TM’s brother 51% of the shares in the company in return for TM’s timber concessions. TM told George Chan to dump TCS and GC, like a good running dog, did as he was told. This is despite the fact that Meradong people wanted TCS because he was using his own money to provide help to Meradong.

The SUPP Central working committee even endorsed TCS’s name as candidate. What kind of party leader is GC if he dumped his own men and listen to PBB”s leader? Is SUPP a sub-branch of PBB? What is worse when TCS protested to GC, GC lied to his face straight and told him to keep quiet and TCS will be given another chance as senator. Of course GC did not keep his promise, he gave the senatorship to Sim Kheng Hui.


4. This is not the first time GC lied openly to his colleagues. In 2004 General Elections, he promised Law Hing Ding (LHD) that he will be nominated as the Minister but for the last term. George even put this in writing. After the elections, George nominated Datuk Peter Chin. Is it any wonder that LHD called GC a liar in the Chinese press and GC did not dare to sue him? If George Chan is a man of honour as he says he is, why does he not sue LHD for defamation? LHD even went to the extent of writing a complaint letter to all the SUPP CWC members and gave a copy to the PM and TM. He has documents to prove that GC is lying and backstabbed him.


5. You do not need to look at GC’s political games to know he is a fake. Just look at the way he behaves towards his first wife, Judy. He cheated on for some many years that she ran away. He had an open affair with Christina Foo of Priority One and gave the company a lot of state government consultancies.

During the search and rescue mission for the late Dr. Judson in the Kelabit highlands, he visited the place often to “direct” the search. The real reason was that he was chasing a Kelabit girl and took her to KL to be his mistress. Just ask anyone in the highlands and they will confirm this story. This girl is now driving a BMW and living in a semi-D in KL.

What kind of man would use a moment of anguish over a helicopter crash to think about sex and chasing girls. Is this a “leader” of the Sarawak Chinese community? Even worse, he allowed his daughter (the most beautiful one with white skin) to marry TM’s son.

When Sulaiman turned out to be playboy and started to hit the daughter, GC actually told the daughter to “bear it” as Sulaiman could ensure that she has a luxurious life. When Sulaiman heard this, he hit the poor daughter even harder and send her off to live in the states leaving him free to chase all sorts of girls in KL and Manila.

As a father, how could GC do all these things? The question is why? Why does GC do all these underhanded things? The answer is simple. The love of power and wealth.

He can only get power and wealth by being a running dog to TM and this is exactly what he has done. He has made SUPP weak because TM wants SUPP to be weak while the Melanau dynasty rules forever.

GC wants to enjoy the good things in life like fine wine (he has one of the finest wine collections in Malaysia) and women. He can only do this as deputy CM. With a leader like George Chan, who lies to his own senior party members, and reports to PBB and TM. Can we elect SUPP? If SUPP were to come out and say that it is a sub-branch of PBB, at least I will consider it as they will be telling the truth for the first time.

After all these nonsense I decided that I had better migrate. I do not want my children to deal with this sort of “leaders” and live in a country where the Chinese leaders are forever “kowtowing” to someone else.

I am not writing this out of spite. I encourage readers in Sarawak and elsewhere to investigate if what I say here is true. Even if 50% is true, don’t you think SUPP deserves to be punished?

The only way to get rid of George Chan and his group of “PBB-SUPP” members is to vote out SUPP until GC loses power. There is no other way.

I took the easy way out by migrating but that does not mean I do not love Sarawak or care for the future of Sarawak. It simply means I am too old. I am telling his story so that the younger generation will know the truth.

Saturday, September 4

Sarawak DAP expresses shocks

(This story was first published by Free Malaysia Today and it is reproduced here for the readers of The Broken Shield)

KUCHING: Sarawak Democratic Action Party has expressed shocks that Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud does not know what the Chinese community wants even after 30 years he has been at the helm of the state government.

“Many, including myself, shocked when we read from the papers last week that the chief minister indicated that he does not know what the Chinese community wants.

“After 30 years as chief minister of Sarawak, it is just simply absurd that Taib does not know what the Chinese community in Sarawak wants.

“What has the chief minister been doing in the past 30 years?

“Rather, what have the chief minister’s counterparts in Sarawak United People who claim to represent the Chinese community on the government been doing in the past 30 years?” asked Chong Chieng Jen, DAP secretary in a letter to the Chief Minister.

Copies of the letter were distributed to the Press today. A copy was sent to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.

He said that a statement like this coming from the chef minister in power for 30 years simply meant that Taib “has failed as a chief minister for all Sarawakians.”

“Let me, as a member of the Opposition and also as a Sarawakian, inform the chief minister what the Chinese community in Sarawak wants. Many of the things what they want as listed herein below are also what a common Sarawakian, a non-Chinese, wants of a state government,” he said.

The list includes the following:
  • Amendment to the Sarawak Land Code to provide for (a) automatic free renewal of land leases for another 99 years upon expiry of the terms of leases, and (b) all section 47 notification shall lapse and cease to be of any effect on the expiry of two years after the date of its publication in the gazette if the government does not acquire the subject land within the said two-year period.
  • A fair and transparent land policy whereby the alienation of state land for commercial purpose ought to be done through open tender system. This is the stark contrast with what has been practised nowadays whereby the chief minister’s family members’ companies have been alienated with large parcels of state land at very low prices, for example:

(i) Lots 9192, 9193 &9194 all of Block 11MTLD, a total of 269 acres of land in BDC, Kuching alienated to Monarda S/B (YAB’s son’s company) at RM291,000 per acre when the prevailing market prices of such land is easily RM1.5 million –RM2 million per acre;

(ii) 33 acres of land at Jalan Batu Lintang, Kuching alienated to Naim Cendera (YAB’s cousin’s company) at RM909,000 per acre when the prevailing market price of such land is easily RM2 million – RM2.5 million per acre;

(iii) Lot 1208 Puyut Land District (10,000ha) alienated to Polar Red S/B (YAB’s son’s company), a dormant company;

(iv) Lot 1210 Puyut Land District (5,000ha), alienated to Magna Wide S/B in 2008, (YAB’s brother’s company), a dormant company; and

(v) Lot 79 Block 5 Balingian Land District (6,358 ha), alienated to Worldsign Harvest S/B (YAB’s sister’s company) a dormant company.

All state government procurement contracts be awarded through open tender where all suppliers and contractors can tender and compete on equal footing. This is also in stark contrast with the practice nowadays whereby Taib’s family-related companies almost enjoy a monopoly control over state government contracts involving millions of ringgit Malaysia.

Annual allocation of funds from the state budgets for the development and maintenance of Chinese middle schools, Chinese primary schools and missionary schools.

Timber concession licences to be awarded for small areas (1000 – 2000 acres per licence) and through open tender system so that all those who are involved in sawmill or wood industry will have a chance to obtain the raw material (timber log) first-hand.

Cheaper electricity for domestic, commercial and industrial uses. This is especially so given that Bakun dam will be in operation soon and that hydro-electricity is cheap. Further more, it is most unfair to the local consumers, businessmen and industrialists that SESCO is selling electricity to Press Metal Berhad at such cheap price of approximately RM0.10 per KwH, while the local consumers, businessmen and industrialists have to pay approximately RM0.30 per KwH for electricity.

Local councils be given sufficient funds to provide proper maintenance of basic infrastructure eg. street lightings, drains and roads.

There shall not be any control or restriction on the production of cement in Sarawak and the importation of cement from West Malaysia to Sarawak.

Fairer treatment and better representation of the Chinese in the civil service. Of late, not only the Chinese are unfairly treated, but also the locals as well. The state government agencies, especially SESCO, is employing foreigners as sky-high remuneration rates on the one hand, but in comparison, the locals who are working at comparable posts are paid pittance, eg. the record-breaking US$1.2 million annual salary for the Norwegian CEO of SESCO. This is an insult to our local talents.

Cancel the imposition of 10% sales tax on four-D lottery tickets as there is no such taxation on the sale of 4-D lottery tickets in West Malaysia.

Chong, who is the MP for Bandar Kuching said: “I can confidently say that the above 10 items are what the Chinese in Sarawak wants which are within the state government’s power to implement immediately.

“Basically they call for equal and fair distribution and enjoyment of state’s wealth and resources. I believe that even the non-Chinese community will welcome the implementation of the above 10 items.

“There are matters like good governance, justice, security, medical welfare, flood mitigation projects and general education issues which are of the concerns of the Chinese community, but they are more federal matters,” he said.

Chong also called on Taib to make full and frank disclosure of the property that he and his family members has amassed within and outside Malaysia during his tenure as the chief minister of Sarawak.

Source:http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/sabah-and-sarawak/9787-what-has-taib-been-doing-past-30-years