‘KING’ ZAHID SAYS – ‘LET DAP DEAL WITH ITS LOOSE CANNON’ – EVEN AS ANTHONY LOKE CALLS FOR ‘MINDSET SHIFT’ IN DAP – REMINDS RAMASAMY, OTHER DAP LEADERS TO FIND SOLUTIONS, NOT JUST BARK AIMLESSLY – ‘DON’T USE SUCH POLEMICS. IT’S COUNTERPRODUCTIVE TO RAISE ISSUES WITHOUT SOLUTIONS’
Let DAP deal with its loose cannon, says Zahid
KUALA LUMPUR: It is up to the DAP leadership to deal with Penang Deputy Chief Minister P. Ramasamy over his remarks about breaking the monopoly of the Malays in the public sector, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Deputy Prime Minister said that the DAP leadership should handle the former for his outbursts.
“He is known as a loose cannon. Let his party (DAP) leadership address the problem,” said Ahmad Zahid.
The Umno president was speaking after attending the Strategic Direction Workshop of the Rural and Regional Development Ministry at a hotel here on Sunday (Feb 12).
On Friday (Feb 10), Ramasamy in a Facebook post said that the Malaysian civil service is not only bloated in terms of the number of employed, but also consists of one ethnic group, predominantly the Malays.
He said the domination of the civil service by one ethnic community needs to be addressed by the new unity government of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Ramasamy added that the new leadership under the concept of Masyarakat Madani should not merely provide lip service to the one-sided nature of the civil service.
On Feb 10, Parti Amanah Negara’s Hulu Langat MP Mohd Sany Hamzan called for DAP to give Ramasamy the boot while former education minister Dr Maszlee Malik stated that Ramasamy has become the unity government’s biggest liability.
However, earlier today, Ramasamy stated that his words were misinterpreted by Pakatan Harapan’s “publicity-seeking politicians”.
“My post has been twisted and re-twisted, allowing cheap publicity seeking politicians to engage in race-baiting.
“I wanted reforms in the public service as suggested earlier by the Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg. My post on the need for reforms in the civil service is something that I have talked about in the past,” stated Ramasamy. ANN
Find solutions, DAP part of govt, Loke reminds members
DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook says DAP leaders and grassroots must have a mindset shift but admits it might take a bit longer for some.
PETALING JAYA: DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook has issued a stern reminder to his party to “act like its part of the government” following P Ramasamy’s call to reform the predominantly Malay civil service.
He said DAP members must have a mindset shift.
“We are part of the government now and the role of the government is to solve problems, not just to raise them,” he said at a press conference at the federal territories DAP’s annual convention.
Loke was asked to comment on the Penang deputy chief minister’s statement and calls by allies in Pakatan Harapan (PH) for action to be taken against him.
When asked if DAP plans to take action against Ramasamy, Loke said the party has its “own ways of doing things” using its “own channels and approaches”.
“We have our own ways of dealing with internal matters. So thank you to our allies for their views on this, but we have our own ways (to deal with it),” he said.
Yesterday, Penang PKR Youth called for Ramasamy to resign as deputy chief minister of Penang, following his call to reform the predominantly Malay civil service.
Ramasamy, who is also Penang DAP deputy chairman, was also accused of having issued statements in the past that were prejudiced in nature and whose “cheap publicity stunts” had stirred controversy, Sinar Harian reported.
Penang PKR Youth information chief Abshar Nurasyraf said the latest call by Ramasamy proved that he was a liability to both the government and the country.
Ramasamy was reported to have called for the public service to reflect the ethnic composition of the country. He later clarified that his call to reform the civil service was not about breaking the “monopoly of the Malays”.
Abolition of road tax
Meanwhile, when asked if there were plans for a total abolition of road tax following the move to digitise motor vehicle licences, Loke said it was out of the question.
He said the two are “separate matters”, adding that the road tax is revenue for the government.
“Without revenue (from such tax), how will the government run the country?” he said.
He said half of the road transport department’s (JPJ) annual income of RM4 billion was derived from the road tax imposed on all vehicles.
On Friday, Loke, who is transport minister, announced that private vehicles owned by Malaysians will no longer have to display their motor vehicle licences, commonly referred to as road tax.
Loke said this was part of the transport ministry’s efforts to digitise JPJ’s services, particularly for motor vehicle licences and driving licences. FMT
Ramasamy should face consequences for ‘racist’ remarks, says PN Youth chief
PETALING JAYA: Perikatan Nasional’s Youth chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari claims there are “double standards” in responding to racism in the country.
He claimed that it was unfair that national hockey player Hanis Nadiah Onn was suspended over racist remarks about a recent AR Rahman concert while Penang Deputy Chief Minister P. Ramasamy got to keep his post despite his remarks on Malay dominance in the civil service.
“Double standards in this country. An athlete who made a joking remark was stamped as being a racist and was suspended,” he said in a Facebook post on Sunday (Feb 12).
“Meanwhile another person, who is a Deputy Chief Minister made a statement on Malay dominance in the civil service and has remained in his role as deputy chief minister,” he said, adding that people should not be blindsided from making an evaluation.
On Feb 11, the Pasir Mas MP had called for Hanis’ suspension to be lifted.
The National Sports Council and Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) suspended her from representing the country at the 2023 Cambodia SEA Games in May.
Ramasamy came under fire after several of his Pakatan Harapan colleagues such as Amanah’s Mohd Sany Hamzan and PKR’s Maszlee Malik urged DAP to sack him for his remarks.
On Friday (Feb 10), Ramasamy in a Facebook post said that the Malaysian civil service was not only bloated in terms of the number of employed, but also consists of one ethnic group, predominantly the Malays.
He said the domination of the civil service by one ethnic community needs to be addressed by the new unity government of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Ramasamy added that the new leadership under the concept of Masyarakat Madani cannot merely provide lip service to the one-sided nature of the civil service.
However, earlier today, Ramasamy responded to critics saying that his comments were misinterpreted by Pakatan Harapan’s “publicity-seeking politicians”.
“Publicity-seeking politicians in some Pakatan Harapan component parties have sought to reinterpret the second-hand news in the media to give a racial slant to my argument for reform in the civil service,” he added. ANN
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