Senator T. Murugiah met Teresa Kok at our Shah Alam Office around noon today.
Murugiah wanted to know Teresa’s first hand account of the poor quality food being offered to detainees.
21 thoughts on “Senator probes ‘dog food’ scandal”
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Great! Let them dig out all the dirty work at grund level. They should go and check all the administrators incharge of purchasing at the government offices.
would like to translate the gold chinese words above YB in the second photo…”for country, for people”
nice picture as it seems to fit
poor quality food may suggest inadequate standard of care to detainees but also need to look at the actual amount of money paid to the preparer of food because base on the AG’s report, there is a worrying trend in the way tax payers’ contribution are being applied.
Hope they are really sincere in their hearts as God would only judge from within.
Lets see whether his findings could produce any positive effects and listens by arrogants
In Australia, it costs the govt AUD$280.00 to keep a prisoner in jail. Malaysia spend a measly sum of just MR5.80 per day for a detainee! When will we reach a civil society status if we went by this comparison or, do we prefer, to be included in the third world countries.
Hi Teresa, it is really good to have you back in action! What a great relief. Just to share my 2 cents here. You mentioned in the press conference that the police gave you ‘dog food’, which were eggs, gravy and some rice. I can understand that you must be very angry and aggravated by this unfair ISA detention, but I truly feel that it is not very decent to use the term ‘dog food’ in your statement. There are many people out there (some maybe in your constituency, those foreign labours in our country, and also people in the under-developed nation) living in poverty, they can’t even afford for a ‘meal’, and eggs are actually luxury food for them. Hence, as a well-respected and highly popular MP, maybe you can use different approach to bring up this incident of human rights violation.
(It is also a fact that even in Malaysia some dogs get better food than some people. Please don’t take Teresa’s comments out of context.) – Moderator
There has been a lot of sinister remarks regarding the food quality. Why not we put a challenge to the BN MPs to stay say a week and consume exactly the same food for the entire period. After all, they were willing to travel to Taiwan for the so called agri-tour.
Friends,
Teresa is using figurative language when she said she was served ‘dog food’meaning the food was not up to decent standard for a human.
Dog owners will tell you that dog food is very expensive. I buy a 20Kg of dog food for some RM 125.00.
Some dog food costs RM 25.00 per KG.
(TK’s exact words were ‘the food was slightly better than dog food’. Different press re-worded it differently and Utusan is trying to exploit this again. So, people, instead of lecturing Teresa, tell the newspapers to stop twisting her intended meaning.– moderator)
Well, we hope Paklah will do the same as he did when he boarded the Rapid train to gain first hand experience and knowledge.
Just drop by for lunch or dinner. We all know that it is hard to get good help these days. When you want to do something right you got to do it yourself. We expect the report in MSM with pictures before end of the month.
After Teresa’s allegation, the senator should probe not only the food served on the 60 plus ISA detainees but also that of the thousands of all other prisoners in the country. Nordin is right by saying ‘why not we put a challenge to the BN MPs to stay say a week and consume exactly the same food for the entire period’. Yes, Teresa, ‘wei guo, wei ming’ or in Bahasa, ‘Demi negara, demi rakyat’ is what drives you to sacrifice so much for our beloved Malaysia.
the word “dog” actually is used to described a less than ideal situation so I suppose if we take it literally, incorrect conclusion might be derived.
what I think YB meant was the food was lousy.
dogs, pigs, cocks have alway been used to described a less than proper/ideal/satisfactory situation/person etc.
for example, DSAI’s famous panda patch was preceded by the mentioning of man’s best friend; whereas as lover of bak kut teh, I am sad that pig is used to deride people who fall out of favour with someone while a make chicken….well let’s keep this forum decent.
YB Kok had a groundhog 7 days in a little cell described as a dog cage while mongrel food was served. Her situation put a lot of people like cats on a hot tin roof while elsewhere, people kept wondering where the frogs are on the 16th day, keen bloggers keep a hawk eye view as situation unfold day by day. It’s a Zoo Negara scenario, these days.
Hi YB,
I hope you also mentioned to Murugiah, other than the food, about the living condition, like the pillows, bedsheet,bed , washroom etc.
It is easy for people like gengzhis to talk about the poorer people etc who are starving.Like they say, put your money where your mouth is; contribute you monthly salary to feed the poor and starving if you are so concerned over them.Have you been detained before? If not, then you will not know the exact quality of the food. Probably if you had tasted the food you would say it might be worse than dog food.You must remember what YB says is being recorded by the press, so it must be a fact.
If YB had said the food was unsatisfactory, you think the foreign press will note it down? YB, you have used the correct words to describe the food given to you.
Frankly I am waiting for you to detail down in your blog the living conditions during you one week stay at Bukit Aman Hilton.
Dear YB,
You should check how much the food cost must be more expesive than a normal meal a person enjoy while eating at coffee shop.
(Rm5.80/day per detainee. This was what she was fed. — moderator)
YB, I’m so great you were out.There is not even an iota of evidence you were a threat to our country, racially or otherwise. Suddenly, this Senator calling on you to check on the condition of food given to detainees. Tell this Senator that you are not a prisoner after all. His government had abused human rights in our country trying to shut a highly respected politician just to please the few in the Malay dominated ruling party.
Tell this bugger that the cost of RM5.80 is the price in 1963! It seems he never does his homework afterall. What a shame trying to check the food quality of RM 5.80. Even a boy of 12 in the street knows exactly what to expect the quality at this cost, not even enough to go for a meal of KFC.
A golden opportunity cometh thy way.
NS trainees get 50 RM, thereabouts, a day.
Of course not to leave the UMNO goons out of the equation.
RM12 to the supplier and balance to be creamed off.
Now, you goons wouldn’t want to miss this opportunity……..
I pay RM5.50 for a plate of nasi lemak and it is quite filling for my LUNCH today.The senator is wasting his time in this investigation if he knows his pricing of food at the hawkers’.
Just look at the prices the Hotels are charging for “Buka Puasa” and then you compare your RM5.80 for 3 meals.If you have been paying for your food, you will know that RM5.80 will get you nowhere. If you have not been paying for your food, you will think that RM5.80 can buy you 3 meals a day.
The debate on “dog food” arises because of the poor command of English by those wonderful people who cannot differentiate figurative speech and satire from direct translations. Better shut up and let people think that you are a fool rather than open up to remove all doubts.
RM5.80 for two (halves) eggs, gravy and some rice? Isn’t this too expensive? It is not only the amount allocated but also the leakages that Senator Murugiah will have to look into.
YB, while there are many issues related to this incident, I’m in the opinion that you should consider leaving this prison-food quality issue out, but focusing your attention to seek justice from this unlawful detention. Simply because unscrupulous individual might make use of this opportunity to divert attention from unlawful detention to dog food issues, as seen in NSTP today – statement from an independent MP…prolonging this sub-issue will not be beneficial as you’ll be portrait as a fastidious and an arrogant person whom demand red-carpet treatment during detention period, etc.
We should be firmed and insisting reform on ISA, review of Police’s standard operating procedure in investigation and detention, why the real culprit is yet to bring to justice, why the result of investigation is yet to make known to public, justification for your detention and the use of ISA, etc. The injustice outcry should center on ISA detention and not food quality during the detention period.
In addition, beside corruption and mismanagement of taxpayers’ money, better meal in prison means heavier burden for law-abiding individuals, whom has to work hard to get our ends meet amidst rising cost of living and inflation. I reckoned taxpayers’ money can be better spent on national development, education, health care and infrastructures.
(The bad food issue was just one of many comments she has made in interviews to local and international media. It’s the govt and Utusan that’s playing up one comment to deflect the others.) Moderator
Hi Moderator,
I’m not taking Teresa’s comments out of context. I’m just saying that she can actually avoid using the term ‘dog food’ or ‘near dog food’ (well, she mentioned ‘slightly better than dog food’ anyway, I heard that with both of my ears) in her speech. The problem is when she tried to draw an ‘equal’ sign between eggs and ‘near dog food’, I don’t think this is decent enough. She can complain about the food, no problem at all, but as a highly respected MP, I seriously think that she needs to consider the feeling of others as well, especially the poor. Our dearest moderator, we are not trying to ‘lecture’ Teresa here, as we all knew that she was victimised, however, it is important for her to listen to the people and be humble to suggestions and feedbacks. Why do you think BN lost disastrously in the past election, I would say partly because they are arrogant and did not listen to people carefully.
(If she has said ‘The food at Shang is slightly better than that of my kopitiam’s‘, will kopitiam customers take it that personally? Isn’t this down to the fact that she used the word ‘dog’ which a wee minority want to sanitise?) Moderator
Hi moderator,
“The food at Shang is slightly better than that of my kopitiam’s‘, will kopitiam customers take it that personally?”
Well, that depends on whether the said kopitiam customers have ever got the chance to try the food in Shang or not. Of course for yourself and the fellow bloggers here, especially those who can afford to buy expensive dog food, Teresa’s statement was absolutely fine, but what about those who don’t know how to go online and don’t even know how to read? Their sources of info will be from the news on TV and even ‘hearsay’, and I don’t think they are minority, and even if they are minority, these people have the right to decide on who is their next MP. In order to be successful in politics, one must learn to respect ‘diversity’ in our community, something ok for you and me might turn out to be very offensive to others. Try look at the speeches by Barack Obama, and Ma Yin Jiu (President of Taiwan), see how mindful they are when they give speeches.
Forgive me Mr Moderator,
But I am very angry with a bunch of your commenters saying that the dog food comparison is not decent or offensive….
Well, I may be no MP but let me say this loud and clear.
At the prices today, cause by the recent fuel hike, then any food worth rm5.80 a day is not even fit for the cats or dogs !!!!!!
So why are these people trying to be so holy or nicey to BN-UMNO? If there are people who eat this standard of food that they are offended being called dog food, then all the protesters above should go and protest to UMNO or sack them, for not finding ways to help these poor people who had no choice but to eat food the same standard as dogs food.
UMNO leaders must be eating something like RM100 per day from the taxes paid by the people who are eating an equaivalent of dogs food. JUST REMEMBER THAT.
And for comparison, is it true or not, even the illegal immigrants in Sabah are given much better treatment. When they were repatriated, the authorities even hired air-con busses to transport them from detention centres to the ports of Tawau and Sandakan. Check it out with old news reports on local dailies or u can ring the editor of Daily Express Kota Kinabalu.
Another comparison, I was informed by the organiser of a govt function a few years back when Samy Vellu was still the minister of works visiting sabah. And his vegetarian special food was prepared by the highest class vegetarian restaurant at the cost of rm300 that dinner alone.
How would Samy feel if he was detained just like Teresa?
I really like to know. The same goes for all the UMNO ministers including Ahmad Ismail and Khir Toyol, i like to see their faces in detention.
My point, ISA detainee were not fould guilty, there was no crime, why are they not allowed to buy their own food or allow their families to bring food, and at same time, dont have to waste even the rm5.80 a day tax money?
Also this Senator Murugiah fella should visit the lock up and see for himself if he really is sincere about his talk. And this must be done just like what a former SUHAKAM commissioner told me in person, that he often visit lockups without giving notice, and the cops would try their best in delaying him to reach the cells until they have touched up on their dresses, etc.
The existing implementation of ISA is the real question here but all the above pretenders just want to talk big about the “dog food tag” issue, trying to pull wool over our eyes.
YES, by the description of Mum Teresa, and confirmed with the arrest of my female friend at KK, the food given to the detainee is DOG FOOD. Period. Any further debate or word twistings or excuses just got to show what kinda hipocrites we have in this corrupted country.
So instead of detaining innocent people and feeding them DOGS FOOD, this goverment should be working hard how to help the hard core poor so they can afford to buy food better than the dog food standard.
DO I MAKE MYSELF clear??
Hi Sabahfan,
Correct me if I’m wrong, I think your comment is pointing at my earlier comments, nothing to do with our moderators, he/ she is completely innocent 😉
Yes, I heard you LOUD AND CLEAR! you are absolutely right that our gov should have done a much better job to ensure all of us can live a much better life, and clearly they failed, and therefore some of our members out there are working extremely hard to do something for us 🙂 But the point I’m trying to bring up here (in this forum particularly) is about whether our MPs should be a little bit more mindful in their statements and speeches, the reason is simple, we need more votes, more political mileage, more support from different groups of people, we are not there yet to achieve our goal. Our MPs need to be careful not to give any chance to their opponents and the media to play dirty. You can look at what happened to Teresa now, the opponents are eyeing on her, hoping that she will make more mistakes and will try all out to put her down.