That is BN politics. My Motion on Rejang logjam was killed without debate. Motion to cut salary of Ministers who had shown laziness was also killed.

(1) 1st Motion Killed
We had seen so many statements made by the BN Ministers on the logjam, that it was an environmental and ecological disaster at the Rejang basin.
We saw the other side of their faces today. The Speaker asked the Dewan whether they agreed to debate my Motion. They voted against debating it. The important Motion on the logjam was out of the window and dismissed.
I hadn’t even the opportunity to move it. I told the Speaker that he was wrong to dismiss my Motion before I even moved it. He smiled. But it was to no avail. The Speaker’s ruling was final.To the BN members, it is a matter of political convenience. To them, it is better to play safe than antagonize the political masters.

(2) 2nd Motion Killed
All elected representatives are entitled to receive answers to questions that they have raised. Over the years, the Ministers (which include the Deputy Ministers by definition) had been lazy to ensure that their Ministries enabled elected representatives to get their answers. For their laziness I gave notice to move a motion to deduct their salaries. It was gunned down by the Speaker saying that a similar motion that was moved by me was dismissed for exceeding the word limit in May 2010. He wouldn’t allow the issue to be opened up.
The Speaker was totally wrong. The subject matter in the May 2010 Motion was never considered or concluded and my Motion was proper. The Speaker quoted Gobind Singh case saying that all elected wakil rakyat is entitled to receive the remuneration/allowances. But my motion is to deduct salary of the Ministers for not doing their jobs. It has nothing to do with the Ministers’ allowances as elected members.I wondered what the Speaker had learnt in his legal practicing days. I also asked him to resign. But that was not captured by the microphone which was switched off by the Speaker.

(3) 3rd Motion Allowed
The 3rd Motion on our table was by BN’s member for Asajaya (Abdul Karim). It was allowed, only because it was from the BN’s Backbenchers’ Chair. They have the numbers.It was a Motion asking the Government to prepare and publish a White Paper on “unhealthy and divisive activities and actions” “undertaken by various peoples, organizations and media from outside the State”.In his motion speech, Asajaya directed his arrows at political leaders from West Malaysia, saying that they had come to Sarawak to “demonize and ridicule our leaders”.In my speech in reply, I said that if “our” leaders are corrupt and unclean, then there is nothing to demonize and ridicule.The member for Pujut (Andy Chia) accused DAP’s political leaders of accusing the Government for having killed Teoh Beng Hock! How ridiculous! He said he heard DAP leaders campaigning in the Sibu By-election thus, “today it is Teoh Beng Hock. Tomorrow it can be me. The next day it could be somebody else.”
I saw nothing wrong to remind voters of the circumstances under which Teoh died, and that security is vital.I am not even offended when Member for Pelawan (Vincent Goh) asked me to quit legal practice on the ground that the issue of Teoh’s death was in court and should not be brought up during the election. That shows how lack of legal knowledge Vincent Goh is.

It shows how sour the SUPP is over their loss in the Sibu by-election.
Pujut could have done a lot better by supporting the Motion, But he seconded the Motion. He even interjected in my speech. After what I felt had taken him a long time to speak, and after he refused to sit, I blurted out, asking the “boy” to sit down. Of course, he was upset, and I withdrew the condescending word.
Pujut’s remarks were hopelessly childish and untrue. DAP politicians were only asking the Government to be responsible because Teoh was alive when he went into the building which housed MACC to help investigate a case of corruption involving RM2400.00. Yet, he was found dead, falling dead to the 5th floor of the building. There was nothing wrong in talking about security in an election campaign. No one ought to kneel and thank the person who caused the death of Teoh, I said.

Asajaya also raised the issue of the Bible where in Sarawak “Allah” could be used but was played up. In my reply, I said that non-Muslim communities had been using the word “Allah” for many decades. Yet, the Government confiscated those Bibles that had been brought to West Malaysia.I said that Allah is an issue in Sarawak. Non-Muslims in Sarawak can use the word “Allah”, but when they land in LCCT or KLIA, they cannot anymore!I do not know how to pronounce “Allah” very well. The Speaker had a laugh when I could not pronounce it accurately. But I can pronounce “Jesus” correctly.

Vincent Goh thought that he was smart. He showed the 2008 DAP election manifesto and say that we had promised RM6000 to poor households. It was very misleading, for that was a national manifesto to be implemented when DAP forms the federal Government. He seemed to say that the manifesto was dishonest and that I should apologise for it, in the same manner as I had apologized to Wong Soon Kai after the 1996 election. Well, he would not like to have it recorded that the whole of SUPP apologise to me on 11th December 2008.Batu Lintang (Voon Lee Shan) had a go at opposing the Motion. The Speaker said he went off tangent, but Voon continued reading and ended abruptly.

Needless to say, Asajaya’s Motion received a lot of support from his colleagues. It was carried, with the 5 DAP members voting against it. We wait to see when the Government will publish a White Paper! Before he wound up the debate, Asajaya tried to explain what a White Paper is. When I asked what colour is the White Paper, he was not able to answer. I wonder whether the BN folks knew!

(4) 4th Motion killed
Pending (DAP – Violet) moved a Motion to introduce a Private Members’ Bill to reform the Land Code, to allow automatic renewal of land leases and to make better provisions for land compensation. SUPP’s George Chan said yesterday that he would not support the Bill. Well. It was a clear cut case. The Speaker said that Pending had to seek leave of the Dewan to move the Motion. It was put to the vote. Without even having the chance to move it, the Motion was killed. Only the DAP side supported the leave application with 5 votes.

That is how the state Government looks at things proposed by the DAP. We had even prepared about 100 copies of the Bill for distribution to all the ADUNs. The SUPP would never see DAP eye to eye and would muster all kinds of tactics to kill the Motion. They had a part to play in denying the Motion. Surely, the people will give them the boot in the coming election.

(5) Motion to Suspend Ting
At 3:40pm, we received the much anticipated Notice of Motion to suspend Ting Tze Fui (Meradong). Ting had many months ago said that “millions and millions of development funds had been siphoned off and unaccounted for”. She provided the facts and substantiation but that was not good enough to the Privileges Committee who had recommended that she be suspended for the remaining of the session.
So, how long would be the suspension? The Motion will surely be tabled by a Minister tomorrow and we shall know how long is meant by “suspended for the remaining part of this session”. Could it be 2 months until end of the year?
Ting may have lots to say but against the hungry foxes, there is no escape. She can be guaranteed that she will be “suspended for the remaining part of this session”.

Down but Not Out

I may be down but I am never out. As far as fighting for the right of the rakyat is concerned, I never quit. Neither am I prepared to let the BN have the last laugh. The Pakatan Rakyat will make sure that the BN is going to receive its just reward in the coming state election.This is the time when the people of Sarawak missed Chong Chieng Jen (DAP – Kota Sentosa). Had he been in the Dewan, he would have his piece of mind recorded in the hansard to oppose the meaningless motion.
Meaningless? It wasn’t I who coined it. I was in the toilet on the 8th floor when someone came in and said “It is a waste of time. The Motion is too small”. I could not laugh in the cubicle, could I?However, the BN folks had the pleasure in debating and passing an insignificant, meaningless motion. Do they have better things to do?

by Saudara YB Wong Ho Leng,
State Assemblyman for N45 Bukit Assek and Member of Parliament for P212 Sibu