Kit Siang wants RCI on Disaster Management

The Federal Government was overwhelmed by the magnitude and scale and scope of the current floods.

KUALA LUMPUR: DAP’s elder statesman Lim Kit Siang, after having failed to persuade Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to declare a state of emergency to cope with the worst floods in living memory, wants him to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into Flood Disaster Management Preparedness, and with good reasons too.

The Federal Government, he pointed out in a statement, was completely overwhelmed by the scale and scope of the current floods. The number of flood victims increased by over 1,000 per cent to a quarter of a million people in less than ten days, added Lim who is also DAP Parliamentary Leader and Gelang Patah MP.

“The evidence of the Federal Government being overwhelmed by the magnitude and scale and scope of the current floods is aplenty.”

Resuming the debate on the declaration of a state of emergency, Lim argued that Najib’s reasoning was not convincing at all.

“I would urge the Prime Minister to reconsider his decision, or to table the issue as an agenda for a special Cabinet meeting on the floods,” he said. “He should also take into account reactions todate on declaring an emergency, both from the insurance industry as well as the general public.”

Lim expressed satisfaction however that Najib has been persuaded to cut short his vacation in Hawaii and return to Malaysia to take personal charge of the flood disaster relief operation.

A special cabinet meeting on the floods, recalled Lim, was the second of his three recent objectives.

The declaration of a state of emergency, continued Lim, was his third objective.

“It would enable full and fast mobilization of flood relief efforts at federal, state and local levels with full public support,” reiterated Lim.

Najib has said that an emergency would absolve insurance companies from paying compensation arising from damages to property and vehicles.

However, those in the industry say that claims would have to be paid if they are made before the emergency is declared. Also, not many people in the rural areas have insurance cover for damage to their properties at home, for example.