'Free water' effective June 1 Mar 28, 08
The Selangor government will provide 20 cubic metres of free water to
households in the state effective June 1 this year.
In a statement today, the Selangor menteri besars office said that the
decision was made after a study revealed that it is a feasible plan.
The state government is deliberating the proper mechanism to implement this
policy which has been introduced to reduce the burden of the people, especially
those in the lower income group.
"However, the people must not indulge in wastage in order to preserve the
states water source to ensure long-term supply," read the statement.
This was one of the election promises made by PKR in the run up to the March
8 general election.
The new policy comes amidst concerns that the water tariffs in Selangor could
see a sharp spike following an agreement between the state, federal government
and water concessionaire Syabas.
The deal became the subject of controversy after it was revealed that the
terms are allegedly lopsided in favour of the concessionaire.
Selangor fell into the hands of PKR, DAP and PAS following the March 8
elections.
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Khalid urged to drop flawed policies Mar 28, 08
Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahims recent statements on the zero
squatters policy and the possibility of imposing additional levy on foreign
workers have continued to draw more flak.
The latest to join in the fray was the Bar Council, the legal professional body
which represents some 13,000 lawyers in the country.
Council chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan, in a two-page statement this evening,
said the council was deeply concerned on Khalids remark that the latter will
continue his predecessor Mohd Khir Toyos policy to eradicate all squatter
settlements in the state.
Ambiga said the policy was flawed and described it as an unmitigated
disaster from the high-handed manner on how the forced evictions were carried
out previously.
The inhumane treatment and the failure to address the basic housing needs of
the poor and marginalised is of great concern.
Rather than support such a policy, the state government should abandon it and
make an open declaration that they will desist from using the draconian
Essential (Clearance of Squatters) Regulations promulgated under the Emergency
Ordinance, she urged in the statement.
Ambiga noted that the state government should adopt negotiations and
willingness to give the urban settlers affordable and decent alternative
housing.
Human rights norms decry forced evictions. They demand instead that no one
should be left homeless or vulnerable to human rights violations. It is the
responsibility of the state to ensure proper resettlement in such
circumstances.
In an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini earlier this week, Khalid said the
new state government will not scrap the zero squatters policy initiated by
the previous government but vowed to carry out the policy as humanely as
possible.
The announcement came as much surprise and drew criticism from various quarters
as Khalids party, PKR, was at the forefront of efforts to uphold the rights
of, among others, the Kampung Berembang settlement in Jalan Ampang, Kuala
Lumpur.
Avoid xenophobic responses
On the move to impose an additional levy of RM9 on foreign workers, Ambiga said
the council was disturbed with such a move as the levy would almost certainly
be transferred to the workers by their employer.
In the same interview with Malaysiakini, Khalid has said his government will
seek to realise a system where companies that hire foreign workers will be
taxed RM9 per worker per month.
He explained that the policy, if carried out, will collect funds that can be
used to conduct skills training programmes for the states youth and contribute
towards decreasing the dependence on foreign labour.
The menteri besar argued the less dependence on foreign labour will also mean
less crime, less social problems, which Ambiga begged to differ and called it
a wrongly held view.
Statistics show that foreigners only account for two percent of the crimes
committed in the country, and while no one will discount that we have our share
of social problems, it is unfair to lay the blame for them solely on foreign
workers.
Xenophobic responses such as these must be avoided, she added.
Ambiga told the new state government that its focus should be on how to ensure
the workers receive fair treatment and equal access to justice instead.
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Forced evictions not the way, says Bar Council
PETALING JAYA: The new Selangor state government should abandon the
zero-squatter policy practised by the previous state administration, said the
Bar Council.
Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan said the policy was "flawed and an
unmitigated disaster from the high-handed manner in which the forced evictions
were carried out".
In a statement, she said the Bar Council was concerned with Mentri Besar Tan
Sri Khalid Ibrahim's announcement that he would continue on the path embarked
by his predecessor to eradicate all squatter settlements in Selangor.
"The inhumane treatment and the failure to address the basic housing needs of
the poor and marginalised is of great concern.
"Rather than support such a policy, the state government should abandon it
and make an open declaration that it will desist from using the draconian
Essential (Clearance of Squatters) Regulations promulgated under the Emergency
Ordinance," she said.
Ambiga added that a policy on urban resettlement should include room for
negotiations and the willingness to give these settlers affordable and decent
alternative housing.
On another matter, the Bar Council also voiced their concerns about Khalid's
proposal to impose an additioanal levy on foreign workers, which would be paid
by the employers.
"Such a levy would almost certainly be transferred to the worker by his
employer," said Ambiga.
She also said it was wrong to perceive that a reduction in foreign labour
would result in lower crime and social problems.
"Statistics show that foreigners only account for 2% of the crime in the
country, and while no one will discount that we have our share of social
problems, it is unfair to lay the blame solely on foreign workers," she said
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Asset declaration: 'Include past records' Andrew Ong | Mar 28
A proper asset declaration exercise involving public office bearers must
include past financial records as well, said the Democracy and Anti-Corruption
Movement (Gerak).
Gerak chairperson Ezam Mohd Noor said a current public asset declaration
alone does not guarantee accuracy.
"It is easy to transfer assets before a declaration. It takes just one day to
close an account. All one has to do is maintain one account and make a deflated
declaration," he explained when contacted yesterday.
A way around this, according to Ezam, is to compel public office bearers to
furnish their income tax returns for the past one or two years on top of their
current declaration.
"The purpose is not to dig into their past but to use the information as a
barometer," he added.
Ezam also suggested that asset declarations be made annually, with the first
and final declaration exercise in one term being the most important.
"We want to know what they have at the beginning and the end of their term.
If a person suddenly becomes richer by a few million, then of course something
is wrong," he said.
No compromise
In an unprecedented move, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced on
March 17 that he would be compelling cabinet ministers and their deputies to
publicly declare their assets.
Ezam also raised a suggestion made by the late Harun Hashim, the countrys
first Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) director, on ways to limit the circulation
of asset declaration data.
According to Ezam, Harun had told a conference in 1997 that a way to lessen
the exposure of the data was to charge a nominal fee for the documents.
"Some individuals might have a problem of making their assets too public.
Thus, this mechanism will limit the data to people who are really serious about
scrutinising the data," he said.
On the newly formed Selangor government, Ezam hoped that the new state
leadership would be a pioneer in publicly declaring their assets.
"Gerak really hopes that they would do so on the basis of good governance and
transparency. To any government committed to good governance, there should be
no compromise," he said.
In a recent interview with Malaysiakini, Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid
Ibrahim said that some state exco members have reservations about publicly
declaring their wealth.
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