Hari ini saya bersama 21 orang AHLI MAJLIS yang lain di MPKJ telah ambil sumpah untuk memegang Jawatan Ahli Majlis sehingga Julai 15, 2010. Dikatakan MPKJ mempunyai jumlah Ahli Majlis yang paling banyak dikekalkan. Namun saya berpendirian bahawa pada masa depan rakyat tempatan harus diberikan kuasa untuk membuat pilihanraya untuk Kerajaan Tempatan ini. Sebelum 1969, memang ada pilihanraya untuk Majlis Tempatan tetapi disebabkan pembangkang banyak menang kerusi ini, maka parti pemerintah telah tukar kepada sistem lantikan. Saya juga telah membuat kenyataan akhbar bahawa saya tidak akan meneruskan jawatan ini bagi penggal ketiga jika ditawarkan kerana berpendirian bahawa Jawatan ini mesti dibuat pilihanraya dan rakyat patut diberi kuasa memilih. Pemilihan politik boleh membawa kepada amalan pilihkasih, bodek dan diskriminasi.
New faces want to be more accountable
THIRTY-four new faces have made it to the councillors list for 2009/2010. The list of names was announced by the State Local Government, Research and Studies Committee chairman Ronnie Liu on Monday.
However, Liu only read out 18 to 20 names to the press, with the remaining to be announced later. Each local authority has 24 councillors, headed by the council president or mayor.
Liu said the list will also include nine Orang Besar Daerah, a palace representative for nine districts in the state.
The new faces in the Selangor councillors line up are:
·Shah Alam City Council (MBSA - three new faces)
Ng Boon Teck, Khairudin Osman and Richard Yeoh Yong Wei.
·Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ - two new faces)
Tiong Boon Kiong and Choong Yew Lim.
·Selayang Municipal Council (MPS - two new faces)
Sian Keng Eng and Tengku Zulpuri Shah Raja Puji.
·Hulu Selangor Municipal Council (MPS - six new faces)
Velumoni Perumal, Law Say Hin, Law Suet Peng, Yong Chan Hee, Cheah Chee Mun and Chan Kok Siew.
·Kuala Langat Municipal Council (five new faces)
Munusamy Erishin, Maniarasan Ramasamy, Yong Keh Chin, Yap Lai Keng and Lau Win See.
·Klang (MPK - three new faces)
Choo Tak Keang, K. Deepakaran and Gan Heng Kim.
·Ampang Jaya (MPAJ - one new face)
Dr Fan Seng Choy.
·Subang Jaya (MPSJ - two new faces)
Rajiv Rishakaran and Choong Hoon Ming.
·Kajang (MPKj- one new face)
Ng Tien Choo,
·Sepang (MPSp - two new faces)
Foo Weng Foi and Goh Hong Ting,
·Kuala Selangor (five new faces)
Pua Leng Bee, Lim Tian Meng, T. Thirumurthi, Azli Idris and Shamsuddin Dahalan.
·Sabak Bernam (three new faces)
Abu Talip Ujang, Azman Masni and Hamidah Abdul Malik.
Meanwhile, Subang Jaya Residents Association chairman A. S. Gill said the association hoped that the councillors would not approve any new developments as Subang Jaya was already overdeveloped.
“The councillors should consider the projects’ density, traffic impact assessment and social impact assessment.
“However, there shouldn’t be any more developments that do not benefit the people,” he said.
Gill added that other issues that the councillors should look into are traffic congestion and greening of the township.
On the appointment of Subang Jaya assemblyman Hannah Yeoh’s special assistant Rajiv Rishyakaran as the MPSJ councillor, he said Rajiv was a right candidate.
“I know him since last year’s election. He is young, sincere, has a lot of ideas and does not come with a baggage unlike the old-timers who might be championing their own, or other people’s agenda,” he said.
Tan Jo Hann, who is reappointed as MPSJ councillor, said he would continue to promote accountability.
“People used to be angry as they had no say in issues but for the past one year, we tried to get them involved meaningfully in the decision-making process, such as attending meetings concerning traffic and developments,” he said.
Tan added that as an NGO representative, he would also continue to advocate people’s rights.
“Whether a councillor or not, the work will continue and I will not hesistate to bring up issues that warrant public attention, especially on the poor community,” he said.
The Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) will see Petaling Business and Industry Association chairman Choong Yew Lim joining its board of councillors this month.
When contacted, the 55-year-old who previously served for MPSJ, said he heard of the reshuffle but had yet to receive the news.
In MPSJ, Choong was in charge of infrastructure and business licensing and said he was now ready to serve the people in PJ.
“I have learnt a lot from being a first-time councillor in MPSJ,” said Lim who is also the adviser to the Catholic High School Board of Governors.
All-Petaling Jaya Residents Associations Coalition (APAC) chairman Liew Wei Beng hoped the new councillors would be able to contribute to the city more constructively unlike the previous ones where many were unfamiliar with their areas.
Contractor Tengku Zulpuri Shah Raja Puri, formerly the Malay Electrical and Mechanical Contractors’ Association Malaysia secretary, is one of the two new councillors for the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS).
Tengku Zulpuri, 44, who will celebrate his 45th birthday on July 15 said he would study the laws of the council.
Another new councillor is Sian Keng Eng, who helps Bukit Bintang MP Fung Kui Lun.
Councillor Kuan Perk Siong, who is retained under the DAP quota, said he planned to work even harder and restructure the residents committee in his zone because it was shaped like a snake and criss-crosses other zones.
Councillor Gopalan Krishnan Rajoo said if he remained as a councillor, he would bring out all the problems that he had faced.
Kajang municipal councillor S. Arutchelvan, nominated again under the NGO quota, said the public should have more say in the appointment of councillors.“
It must be a democratic process so that councillors are accountable to the public rather than the political parties,” he said, adding that one-term was too short for councillors to learn the law and process and for them to make the right decisions.
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