By Baru Bian
The latest statement by Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James
Masing justifying the use of the military plane to bring the village chiefs to
Putrajaya is turning this sorry saga into a comedy show.
 |
| Sarawak PKR chairman Baru Bian |
It is clear to anyone following the recent developments
that the DCM has gone into damage control mode after heavy criticism on social
media, but unfortunately his ‘sound reasoning’ of payback for fighting the
communists many many years ago is just plain absurd.
In the earlier
reports, the DCM was noted to have said, “It was because I could not afford
using commercial flights. We are talking about 180 people”.
The purpose of the visit was said to have been as a show
of support for Najib’s leadership. Nothing was said about payback for fighting
the communists.
If the DCM is really serious about rewarding the village
chiefs for their services rendered, flying them in a military jet not made for
comfort or with amenities, and taking a longer time than a commercial plane, is
not the right way.
Surely they deserve to fly business class on a comfortable
plane?
It is the least the DCM could have done for them, after
all the sacrifices they made.
Did he make the ‘ultimate sacrifice’ and travel with the
village chiefs in the military plane or did he fly in comforts on a commercial
plane?
If the DCM is really serious about rewarding those who
fought the communists, why be selective and only reward those from Song, Kapit
and Belaga ?
What about those who live in other areas? I know a few ex
Sarawak Rangers in Long Semadoh, who fought the communists. Why are they not
similarly ‘rewarded’?
If the DCM is really serious about rewarding those who
fought the communists, why not fight for their pensions to be raised?
That would be fair to all ex-servicemen, and certainly
that would be more useful to them. It is no secret that the ex-servicemen have
been calling for their pensions to be raised as they cannot make ends meet on
what they are receiving now.
As for him asking me to make up my mind whether I am
accusing him of abusing the dignity of the village chiefs by taking them on the
military plane or abusing his power by using the military aircraft, the answer
is both.
These two propositions are not mutually exclusive, and
there is no contradiction in them, so I am saying he has done both.
His admission that he could not afford to fly them
commercially and therefore used the military aircraft is a blatant abuse of
power by using government assets for political activities.
Not only was that an abuse of power, it was also a misuse
of military assets, as this was not an emergency situation that required the
use of the military aircraft.
The question is, who initiated this visit?
If it was James Masing, he should have paid for them to
travel in comfort.
If it was Najib Razak, he should have paid for them to
travel in style and comfort.
Najib could have come to see them himself; why the need
to bring them in such an undignified manner?
I reiterate that it was appallingly disrespectful for the
DCM or the PM to be so stingy and fly them in a plane not designed for commercial
use.
Sadly, I expect none of the village chiefs questioned
Najib about the accusations levelled against him by the DoJ and other countries
around the world about his involvement in the 1MDB corruption scandal.
With all his billions, he could have easily chartered a
plane to fly them to Putrajaya if he had any respect for them.
The irresistible conclusion in this farce, is that the
DCM is playing politics, and is now just attempting to limit the damage by
giving his post-event justification. Talk about grasping for straws.-October 2,
2017
Note: Baru Bian is chairman of Sarawak PKR
and State Assemblyman for Ba'Kelalan.
No comments:
Post a Comment