Chow Kon Yeow: 曹观友

Gong Xi, Gong Xi

Let’s usher in the Lunar New Year with hope for a peaceful, stable and yet prosperous year.

There were no major natural disasters last year but many Malaysians were either killed violently in cold- blooded crimes or lost their lives in road accidents.

Pak Lah has promised us a clean government with improved and efficient delivery system. He also wanted to hear the truth from the people.

But has he delivered on his promises so far? A little bit, maybe.

The general impression is the PM does not have enough support to carry through his reform pledge.

But we should not give up on his yet; hopefully this New Year will give him strength to do what is good for the country.

Year 2006 is an important one as the Ninth Malaysia Plan will be launched in April.

Pak Lah has expressed that there would be a fairer distribution of the nation’s wealth.

To achieve this objective, policies based on fair and just principles must be put in place.

The nation’s wealth can be distributed justly without having to be pegged on racial or religious considerations.

Maybe in the year of the Dog, the government can be “racial-blind” so that our progress towards a developed nation by 2020 would not be hindered by race-based policies.

Gong Xi Gong Xi for a peaceful and progressive year ahead.

Former PAS Youth Chief Mahfuz Omar’s call for legislation on death penalty to punish apostate is most frightening and unwarranted.

Non-Muslims feel even more dejected to see things turning from bad to worse in this country.

The psychological impact felt by non-Muslims over the Moorthy’s case and the controversial withdrawal of the memorandum to the Prime Minister should not be under-estimated.

No other issues have made them so marginalized and unsure about their future in this country.

Mahfuz Omar’s call for the death penalty to be imposed on apostate adds on to this fear and hopelessness feeling.

Mahfuz Omar and the PAS Youth can be extremely gung-ho about protecting Islam, syariah laws and even Article 121(1A) but are they able to provide remedy to restore the constitutional rights of non-Muslims.

It is just not political correct to make such a call. It is not even absolutely religiously correct either (just google search on punishment on apostate to find out why).

As PAS calls for the memorandum to be withdrawn, let me call on Mahfuz (my former Parliament colleague) to withdraw his call for death penalty.

This morning while driving down to work, a banner hung at the busy Jalan Jelutong/Jalan Kudin traffic intersection caught my attention.

“Jangan Main Dengan Api” , the UMNO Taman Perak Branch warned the nine non-Muslim Ministers for sending a memorandum to the Prime Minister, calling for a review of laws affecting the rights of non-Muslims.

Later upon reaching office, I asked Action Team chief Tham Weng Fatt to go and snap a picture of the banner.

He came back disappointed, as several Special Branch officers had taken the banner down a few minutes earlier.

The memorandum can be withdrawn and banner taken down, but there is no way to stop people from talking about this important issue which has far-reaching implications on Malaysia and her citizens.

As I said in an earlier post, the conflicting jurisdiction between the Syariah and Civil courts must be addressed and not swept under the carpet once again.

The Prime Minister had said the Federal Constitution would not be amended to give civil court power to hear matters concerning Islam.

He cannot just shut the door on the issue and think that it had been resolved.

Just before lunch time, a distressed Murali came to the office with his wife and young child tagging behind.

They have just come back from the Socso office, located at the 46th Floor, Komtar Tower Block.

They shared a lift with several government officers and Murali was aghast to hear one of them uttering racist remark.

“Ini orang Cina dan India, minoriti dan tumpang di tanah kita, masih mahu kacau kita…”

Murali and his wife were clearly upset.

“Can the DAP do something, or else we will have no place here,” Murali’s wife sighed.

DAP Penang is disturbed by news that the Beng Teik Main School in Lebuh Katz, Georgetown has been served a notice to quit by 30 April for its failure to pay rental for as long as 18 months.

I am shocked to learn that the State Education Department has failed to pay the monthly rental of the school premises to the landlord over the past 18 months.

If this is so, then the Deputy Education Minister Datuk Hon Choon Kim is guilty of misleading Parliament into believing that the Education Ministry has been paying the monthly rental of RM1000.

Just six months ago, the Deputy Minister told Dewan Rakyat on 28 June 2005 that the Ministry was still paying the monthly rental even though there were only 13 students in the school.

Datuk Hon Choon Kim was responding to my adjournment speech in Parliament on the relocation of the Beng Teik Main School.

Now we are surprised to learn that contrary to Datuk Hon’s promise at the Dewan Rakyat, the landowner was not paid for the past 18 months.

Datuk Hon has told a serious lie in Parliament and he should be reprimanded for it.

The DAP Penang also want Datuk Hon to explain whether the Ministry had actually approved the permit for the school to be relocated to Bukit Mertajam.

Datuk Hon must come out clean in this matter lest Beng Teik Main School would face the same fate as Sin Chung School in Kepala Batas.

CHOW KON YEOW

DAP membidas Menteri Kesihatan kerana berlaku kes Syafiqah menanti bantuan perubatan sehingga nafas akhir.

DAP ingin menyuarakan kekesalan kerana berlakunya kes Syafiqah berumur 2 tahun yang menanti bantuan perubatan sehingga nafas akhirnya, sepertimana didedahkan oleh ibunya, Norhayati Omar di Utusan Malaysia.

Kelmarin DAP telahpun menyifatkan kegagalan Tabung Bantuan Perubatan mencapai matlamatnya sebagai satu kegagalan dalam sistem penyampaian Kementerian Kesihatan.

Pendedahan Puan Norhayati Omar bahawa hampir dua tahun keluarganya sia-sia kerana karenah birokrasi sehingga dipaksa merayu sumbangan kewangan orang ramai menerusi media bagi menyelamatkan nyawa Intan Syafiqah telah membuktikan wujudnya kelemahan dalam pengurusan tabung perubatan ini.

Masalah seperti itu selalu berlaku di Malaysia. Kita mendapati ramai rakyat Malaysia yang sakit kronik perlu meminta sumbangan awam melalui media sedangkan tabung yang mempunyai RM 100 juta tidak disalurkan kononnya kurang publisiti.

DAP tidak mahu dengar alasan Menteri Kesihatan tentang kegagalan menyampai bantuan perubatan ini.

DAP menuntut supaya Menteri menjalankan siasatan atas kes Syafiqah yang menanti bantuan perubatan selama dua tahun sehingga nafas akhir.

It was reported that 10 non-Muslim Cabinet Ministers have submitted a joint memorandum to appeal Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to review the Constitution and Islamic laws affecting non-Muslims religions rights.

The submission of memorandum by non- Muslim Cabinet Ministers is unusual and unprecedented. The Moorthy’s controversy and the public discussion on amendments to the Federal Constitution have put much pressure on component parties of the ruling Barisan Nasional.

The DAP welcome the action taken by 10 non-Muslims Cabinet Ministers and hope that the Prime Minister would react positively to voices of non-Muslims in the country.

However we want to remind the 10 non-Muslims Ministers and their political parties that they have a constitutional duty to promote fundamental rights and liberties of Malaysians guaranteed by our Constitution.

They should not betray the mandate of the people because of short-term political gains.

It is not too late for them to reconsider their support the declaration that “Malaysia is an Islamic State”.

Their support for the declaration has encouraged the bureaucracy to push for greater Islamisation policies in the country, even to the extent of the silence rewriting of our Constitution.

Media Statement by DAP National Vice Chairman and Member of Parliament for Tanjong Chow Kon Yeow on Wednesday, 19 January 2006

Health Minister sitting on RM100 millions when critically sick Malaysians are suffering!
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It is shocking news that the new RM100 millions Medical Assistance Fund set up by the Government has not achieved its desired results as only RM6.1 millions had been given out so far.

This is an admission of failure in the Health Ministry’s delivery system.

Needy Malaysians who are disabled or suffering from chronic ailments would be deprived of continuous aid under the Fund unless the Minister takes urgent step to reduce bureaucratic red tapes in the disbursement of aids.

This is a typical Malaysian malaise. Here we have ordinary citizens with chronic ailments seeking public donations through the media but there we have millions stacking up at the Minister’s desk because of the lack of publicity of the fund.

Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek should not give a lame excuse that the fund was left untouched because of the lack of publicity.

Instead he should order a revamp in the delivery system of the said Medical Fund so that money would reach the hands of deserving Malaysians to seek treatment for their chronic ailments.

We hope Datuk Dr Chua would not be still sitting over the RM100 millions and we expect better results the next six months.

CHOW KON YEOW