PENANG DUN | Irate Umno assemblypersons staged a walkout from the state assembly after their motion calling for a halt to hillslope development in Penang was “amended”.
Tempers flared when Deputy Chief Minister Rashid Hasnon (PKR-Pantai Jerejak) tabled another motion to amend Muhammad Farid Saad's (BN-Pulau Betong) motion tabled earlier.
As Umno assemblypersons exited the hall, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had Pakatan Harapan representatives in stitches when he remarked, “Don’t run. Don't find excuses to leave the House.”
“I am not running!” retorted Roslan Saidin (BN-Pinang Tunggal) who was the last to leave, prompting Speaker Law Choo Kiang to remark, “Yes, you are not running but walking away.”
The incident started when Farid stood up and expressed sadness over what had transpired.
“You have used your majority powers to stop my motion,” he said.
Law allowed the amendment to Farid’s motion and opened the floor to debate based on Rashid’s proposal.
Farid's motion was supported by Shariful Azhar Othman (BN-Bertam) whereas Rashid's was backed by all the backbenchers present.
Farid also complained that his motions were often “ciplak” (plagiarised) by his political rivals and never see the light of day in the House.
“This is not the first time it has happened,” he said, referring to another motion on reclamation which he tabled in November last year, which was later set aside.
“Our minority voices are suppressed,” he added.
An infuriated RSN Rayer (DAP-Seri Delima) then demanded that Farid withdraw his remarks.
“We did not reject your motion. Your remarks hurt my feelings,” he said.
The remarks also upset the chief minister, who said: “Don’t play around. Don’t have bad intentions."
At this juncture, Norlela Ariffin (PKR-Penanti) joked that her motions were also rejected in the past while the opposition, at least, had the opportunity to table theirs.
Law then explained that he allowed Rashid’s amendment under Standing Order Section 34 (1) where an amendment can be tabled without prior notice to the House.
However, the person who tables the amendment would have to stick to the topic of the earlier motion, which was hillslope development.
The motion and amendment came in the wake of three disasters which hit Penang - floods on Sept 15 and Nov 4, which killed seven, and a landslide in Tanjung Bungah on Oct 21, which killed 11.
In his amendment proposal, Rashid suggested that the state and federal governments work together to form a joint committee to study and investigate the implications of climate change on the environment.
He said that all complaints from those affected by the floods must be taken into consideration while special projects on sensitive hillslopes are reviewed by the joint committee so that all planning for projects can be controlled and monitored thoroughly and in detail.
Apart from this, he also proposed that the joint committee with the support of all technical departments and experts from state and federal agencies audit all development projects to ensure strict compliance with the law.
“That there would be no approval or permission for all development on hillslopes beyond 76 meter, in line with the Penang Structure Plan 2020, which was gazetted in 2007,” he added.
Following the conclusion of the debate, Rashid's motion was unanimously supported by the backbenchers without the presence of opposition assemblypersons.- Mkini
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