It’s now six years since the DAP and PKR promised to enact local council elections. Yet neither Penang nor Selangor, which are under the control of the Pakatan Rakyat, has succeeded in doing so. What exactly is the problem with local council elections that it is taking so long to implement? And why is there so much secrecy surrounding the appointment of councillors?
Ronnie Liu
Muslims serving alcohol: Ban or no ban?
By Nick ChooTHE Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ)’s recent ruling disallowing businesses that serve alcohol from hiring Muslims has raised many questions. Is it a law? A guideline? Just advice? Has it been rescinded? Who enacted the law that the ruling is based on? Why wasn’t it enforced before? And why the furore now?
Assessing Pakatan Rakyat in Selangor
By Ding Jo-Ann
WHAT has the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) Selangor government achieved after two and a half years in power? If one relied on traditional media reports or Umno’s “Save Selangor” roadshow, the answer may well be, “Not very much”. But the reality is much more nuanced, as demonstrated in the book The Road to Reform: Pakatan Rakyat […]
Uncommon Sense with Wong Chin Huat: Spotlight on DAP
By Ding Jo-Ann
THE media spotlight has turned to the DAP in recent weeks over the party’s sacking of Tee Boon Hock, Selangor executive councillor Ronnie Liu‘s special assistant. Tee had allegedly issued letters of recommendation using Liu’s official letterhead and seal to help family members secure contracts. Liu was severely reprimanded by a DAP disciplinary committee for […]
Ronnie Liu’s wriggle
By Gan Pei LingTHE fiasco over support letters has put Selangor executive councillor Ronnie Liu in a tight spot. To shift the spotlight away from himself, he has appealed to his political colleagues to focus on fighting the Barisan Nasional instead.
Supporting letters: Abuse or necessity?
By Tarani PalaniARE support letters by elected representatives and councillors necessary to maintain good public relations, or are they a political liability that are open to misuse and abuse?
Consult civil society on councillor appointments
By Jeffrey PhangTHE Coalition of Good Governance (CGG) congratulates the Selangor government for maintaining the 25% civil society quota in the appointment of local councillors. However, we are concerned that there may be a repeat of last year’s incident where many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and professional councillors were left off the list. They were only confirmed much […]
The problem of Hasan Ali (Updated 7.05pm)
By Deborah LohUpdated at 7.05pm on 25 Sept 2009 PETALING JAYA, 25 Sept 2009: Will the PAS leadership take action against the party’s Selangor commissioner Datuk Dr Hasan Ali for undermining Pakatan Rakyat (PR)? Senior party leaders are unhappy with Hasan and Selangor PAS secretary Mohd Khairuddin Othman who backed his boss, Hasan, by saying that the […]
Hasan Ali — PR member?
By Ding Jo-AnnOn Selcat “Our aim is to restore confidence among the public and there is a need for an independent committee to probe into the misused state allocations. But there is an oversight in the formation of Selcat, as it is simply not seen as independent, all because the seven panel members are politicians.” Selangor PAS […]
DAP and PAS patch up over beer sales
By Deborah LohPETALING JAYA, 13 Aug 2009: Members of the Selangor Pakatan Rakyat (PR) appear to have patched up over the beer sales dispute. Additionally, the coalition’s national leadership has adopted the Selangor menteri besar’s decision to let convenience stores in Shah Alam self-regulate on the sale of the alcohol. Ronnie Liu The two executive councillors at […]
