Press statement by Teresa Kok, MP for Seputeh and Organising Secretary of DAP On 16th May 2009 at Kuala Lumpur
Members of Parliament Should Not Be Appointed as Ambassadors
I am surprised to read that two former Cabinet Ministers, namely YB Dato Seri Ong Ka Chuan and Dato’ Jamaluddin Jarjis are likely to be appointed as ambassadors of Malaysia.
Set aside the credentials of these two politicians as ambassadors to represent Malaysia in foreign countries, the questions are:
i) How can elected representatives represent the country abroad and dumped the voters in their respective constituencies?
ii) As we all know that ambassadors have to represent the country and stay abroad for a few years, who will give service to the voters in the constituencies of Ong Ka Chuan and Jamaluddin Jarjis and speak up for them in the Dewan Rakyat?
If BN government thinks that these two MPs are the most suitable candidates to be ambassadors of Malaysia, then they should resign as MPs from their constituencies.
Teresa Kok
It was widely reported that two former Federal Ministers, MCA YB Ong Kah Chuan and UMNO YB Jamaluddin Jarjis would be appointed as Ambassador to China and Ambassador to the United States respectively by the present Najib government in the coming days. As in the norm of BN culture and practice, those forsaken leaders not given Cabinet posts, will be duly rewarded with lucrative positions like being appointed overseas’ envoys. So it is not surprising about the intended appointments.
With the intended appointments of these two MPs to overseas assignments, their respective constituencies will obviously not be serviced physically and effectively by them. They may appoint stand-ins to look after their areas but this may not be effective and unfair to their constituents who have voted them in as MPs, so the logical way is for the two MPs to vacate their seats and call for by-elections. I strongly agree with YB Teresa on this score. Does one think and wonder BN will call for by-elections which they are strongly against? Strong public sentiments are against them for what they have done politically to Perak!
BN is paranoid about by-elections of late. So far they had lost 4 out of 5 by-elections held in recent months. They cannot afford to lose more for that matter!
The appointment of YB Dato Seri Ong Ka Chuan ambassador to represent Malaysia in Beijing could be PM Najib’ strategy to win the support of Chinese voters should fresh elections be held in Perak. YB Dato Seri Ong Ka Chuan is from Perak. It could also be his strategy to pacify MCA and Umno that the ambassadorship with the ranks of Cabinet ministers making it look like the MCA now has 5 Cabinet Ministers instead of 4 while that of Umno has also increased by one. UMNO YB Jamaluddin Jarjis is a close friend of PM Najib. PM Najib could also be planning to hold by-elections for Tanjong Malim and Rompin where the BN has a better chance of winning both. After the by-elections victories, PM Najib then can claim that BN still has the support of the majority rakyat, and thus stop the momentum of change of the federal government. PR has to tread carefully so as not to rapped by the BN.
Correction:
trapped not rapped
It is so obvious that BN is practising ‘Politics of Patronage’. The more one ‘bodek’, the higher one goes up in position!
I wonder if this assumption is true. most of BN WRs hold forte in rural areas whereby the demands of the residents/voters there are not as numeorus or challenging or difficult as those in urban areas mostly held by opposition WRs.
therefore it is alright if the WRs of those less demanding areas are not around?
however, it is dead wrong to have WRs being ambassadors. WRs are suppose to gather the voices of the voters and bring them into DUNs or Parliament. BN got the polars wrong, appointing rejects by voters into cabinet to look after affairs of the company while those voted in by people (really?) get to leave behind the people who vested their trust in them.
Really (screw) People First! (what) Performance Now!