Things started to significantly pick up late afternoon, yesterday, when Malaysiakini - quoting the Selangor Chief Minister Tan Sri Khalid - declared that councillors in the state will be sworn-in starting from Wednesday.
What a relief it was to hear this.
So one can safely assume that work in the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) will be back to normal latest from next Monday onwards, if not sooner.
I'm just taking it by faith that I'm still under the Chosen Ones' list. Frankly, I just can't wait to get cracking.
The first thing that I have to do is to stop by at the PJ Civic Centre where work is underway to make the building more accessible to people with disabilities.
I've was informed by MBPJ's Engineering Department last week that the new and improved access ramp leading into the auditorium is now ready for installation.
They are just waiting for me to give them the go-ahead. This will only happen after I visit the place and check it out.
The ramp is just one of a number of features in the building that is going to be made fully wheelchair-friendly soon.
Other projects that I intend to jump in on straightaway are my ongoing plans with the disability and canine committees that I head.
One of the new things which I also wish to take on is to focus on the pedestrian crossings around my zone and elsewhere.
I will be pushing for more emphasis on the right of people to walk from one place to another instead of only concentrating on people who travel by their personal vehicles.
There are already several residents' issues that are waiting to be solved. That can only happen as soon as work starts for me in MBPJ.
I asked my people to wait a little while longer until the all-important ceremony is over and done with.
Meanwhile, my crystal ball seems to point to a Thursday or Friday when I believe the swearing-in ceremony will take place in MBPJ.
If true, this will leave me with plenty of time over the weekend to strategise what this and the next year will be like.
In the meantime, yesterday was a fireworks of sorts when a couple of nongovernmental bodies complained about the selection process of the NGO councillors by the state government.
I leave you with coverage of that development by Malaysiakini, the well-known news portal on the Internet of which I subscribed to:
NEW LIST OF SELANGOR COUNCILLORS OUT BY JOSEPH SIPALAN
The Selangor state government has already issued its new list of councillor appointments and expects them to be sworn in by their respective local councils by Wednesday at the latest, said Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim.
He said that it is not the state's intention to reduce the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professionals on local councils, but stressed that there have been quite a few teething problems in maintaining the quota.
Khalid (left) acknowledged the contributions made by NGOs and professionals on the local councils, but pointed out that there has been a lot of "misunderstanding and mistrust" between them and political appointees.
"There are always public discussions on the differences in views, which we thought would be best handled in a private discussion before we go public on these decisions and opinions," he said at a press conference at the state assembly.
"Debating in public, just like in our political experience, will hinder the progress of the activities we are doing."
Earlier, two NGO coalitions had demanded that the Selangor government live up to its principles and uphold the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professional representation on local councils.
The Coalition for Good Governance (CGG) and Coalition of NGO and Professional Appointed Councillors (Conpac) claim that the state government has back-tracked on its election promise of transparency and engagement with civil society.
CGG chair Jeffrey Phang said the state executive council's refusal to allow CGG to vet the latest list of councillor appointments was akin to cutting the public out of the decision-making process.
"This current issue of the appointment of local councillors is a watershed of the state's commitment towards local council elections," he said at a press conference after presenting a memorandum to Khalid.
"It will be plain for the public to now judge the credibility of the state government by the steps they will take to resolve this issue."
Conpac chair Tan Jo Hann called on Khalid and state exco member for Local Government Ronnie Liu to arrange for an immediate meeting to discuss the lack of uniformity among local councils in upholding the quota.
"Although the Selangor government had clearly announced the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professional candidates, in reality the present list of appointments is a far cry from the promise," he said.
He said that it is not the state's intention to reduce the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professionals on local councils, but stressed that there have been quite a few teething problems in maintaining the quota.
Khalid (left) acknowledged the contributions made by NGOs and professionals on the local councils, but pointed out that there has been a lot of "misunderstanding and mistrust" between them and political appointees."There are always public discussions on the differences in views, which we thought would be best handled in a private discussion before we go public on these decisions and opinions," he said at a press conference at the state assembly.
"Debating in public, just like in our political experience, will hinder the progress of the activities we are doing."
Earlier, two NGO coalitions had demanded that the Selangor government live up to its principles and uphold the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professional representation on local councils.
The Coalition for Good Governance (CGG) and Coalition of NGO and Professional Appointed Councillors (Conpac) claim that the state government has back-tracked on its election promise of transparency and engagement with civil society.
CGG chair Jeffrey Phang said the state executive council's refusal to allow CGG to vet the latest list of councillor appointments was akin to cutting the public out of the decision-making process.
"This current issue of the appointment of local councillors is a watershed of the state's commitment towards local council elections," he said at a press conference after presenting a memorandum to Khalid.
"It will be plain for the public to now judge the credibility of the state government by the steps they will take to resolve this issue."
Conpac chair Tan Jo Hann called on Khalid and state exco member for Local Government Ronnie Liu to arrange for an immediate meeting to discuss the lack of uniformity among local councils in upholding the quota.
"Although the Selangor government had clearly announced the 25 percent quota for NGOs and professional candidates, in reality the present list of appointments is a far cry from the promise," he said.
NGO COUNCILLORS DECRY 'HIJACKED' SEATS BY LEVEN WOON:
The Selangor state government came under fire today as NGO councillors questioned the validity of political appointees in NGO-designated slots and demanded the list of NGO councillors in all local councils be revealed immediately.
Coalition for NGO and Professional Appointed Councillors (CONPAC) chairman Tan Jo Hann said he is disappointed over the significant reduction of NGO councillors in the new lineup, claiming 25 percent of the councillor quota allocated was ‘hijacked’ by political appointees.
“In MPSJ, the number of NGO and professional councillors has been reduced to three now from seven in 2008.
In Kuala Selangor district council, even the only NGO councillor was axed,” Tan said in a statement handed to the Selangor menteri besar at the state secretariat today.
“If the eliminated councillors are not performing their duties, their assessment should be revealed so the decision will not be seen as arbitrary.”
The councillor lineup announcement last Tuesday was fraught with controversy when some names featured were changed the day after. A scheduled swearing-in ceremony was canceled in the eleventh hour, believed due to last-minute lobbying and politicking.
The Selangor state government on Friday released an amended version of the lineup and set July 20 as the swearing-in date.
Meanwhile Coalition for Good Governance chairman Jeffrey Phang urged the state government to remain true to its election promises of good governance.
“While MBPJ retained their NGO quota, Shah Alam Municipal Council (MBSA) and MPSJ have their NGO quotas taken over by political appointees.
“We commend the state for tabling the Freedom of Information Act, however we would caution that the removal of NGO councillors is a step backward,” he said.
Phang said that the NGO appointees served as the conscience for the council’s decisions, by virtue of their non-partisanship.
CGG, which comprises over 40 NGOs, also observed a shift in now recruiting ‘yes-men’ as councillors who have no proven merits.
Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim when responding to the two NGO’s statements said the state would hold discussions with them.
Tan meanwhile plans to seek an audience with Khalid before the councillors are sworn-in.
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1 comment:
in my point there should be an OKU Councillor be appointed at all council in not only in Selangor but at all council in the country
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