PETALING JAYA: DAP has decided to just reprimand two of its elected representatives in Sabah for accepting state awards which carried the “Datuk” title earlier this month.
DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook said the issue of the two Sabah DAP leaders going against the party’s policy on state or federal awards was among the matters discussed at its central executive committee (CEC) meeting yesterday.
“The committee determined that the actions of the duo were in violation of the party’s policy, which prohibits accepting any titles while serving as elected representatives.
“Therefore, the CEC strongly reprimanded Chan Foong Hin and Phoong Jin Zhe for violating the party’s policy.
“The CEC reiterates the party’s position that all elected representatives should focus on serving the people and only be considered for any awards after retiring from elected office,” he said in a Facebook post.
Chan, who is the Kota Kinabalu MP, is a Sabah DAP committee member, while Phoong is the Sabah DAP secretary and Luyang assemblyman.
On Oct 7, it was reported that Chan, who is the deputy agriculture and food security minister, and Phoong had received the Panglima Gemilang Darjah Kinabalu (PGDK) award in conjunction with Sabah governor Juhar Mahiruddin’s birthday.
In response, Loke was reported to have said that the duo informed him that they had been gazetted in the awards list without having submitted any applications.
“But they still violated the party’s policy by then accepting the awards,” he said.
Chan later acknowledged that he breached the party’s rule by accepting the title, but said he only did so out of respect for the Sabah governor.
He said he would leave it to the party to decide if he should be penalised.
In 2018, the CEC approved a resolution and issued a written advisory to all DAP elected representatives and local councillors, urging them not to accept titles and awards during their active political service. - FMT
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