The Perikatan Nasional (PN) government seems to have sidelined the interest of the Orang Asli when it failed to include a representative from the community in the cabinet line-up, says Cameron Highlands MP Ramli Mohd Noor.
"It seems that the PN government has sidelined the voice of the Orang Asli in the peninsular.
"Just look at how many from MCA and Bersatu were appointed as senators and ministers.
"It seems like appointing an Orang Asli representative (into the cabinet) is a burden to them.
"Where is the justice for Orang Asli?" Ramli (above) said.
He lamented that not only are the Orang Asli people the poorest community in the country, but now their voice is dead.
For the record, Ramli is the nation's first Orang Asli MP, having won the Cameron Highlands by-election last year under a BN ticket.
Meanwhile, a coalition of Orang Asli associations has also expressed their frustrations with the exclusion of Ramli as the sole Orang Asli representative in the cabinet.
"Logically speaking, if history required 62 years to appoint an Orang Asli as an elected representative through votes, does the PN government need another 62 years to appoint a cabinet member from the Orang Asli?" it said in a statement.
The statement stressed that the PN government needs to prioritise the welfare of the Orang Asli in line with Article 8(5)(c) of the Federal Constitution.
The statement was endorsed by Perak Orang Asli Association, Kelantan Orang Asli Association, Perak Orang Asli Culture and Art Association, Batang Padang Orang Asli Association, as well as Orang Asli Football Association.
Finance minister's remark inappropriate
Ramli also took a swipe at Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz's (below) remark yesterday that there will not be political interference with him as the new finance minister.
"His remark lacks concerns. If it's so (as Zafrul remarked), how am I going to ask him about what he does with the allocation in the Dewan Rakyat?" he said.
Ramli is the second BN politician to criticise the former CIMB group chief executive officer.
Yesterday, Umno's Kinabatangan MP Bung Moktar Radin had taken to the social media to criticise Tengku Zafrul.
Zafrul, after being sworn in as a senator yesterday, said he hoped to focus on economic challenges over politics.
"As you know, I'm not a politician. I'll do my best to help the country," he said.
- Mkini
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