Pakatan-friendly NGO holds anti-AES protest
A group of pro-Pakatan Rakyat activists staged a gathering near Parliament building today to protest the traffic summoning Automated Enforcement System (AES), as it is claimed only a certain party stand to profit from it.
A group of pro-Pakatan Rakyat activists staged a gathering near Parliament building today to protest the traffic summoning Automated Enforcement System (AES), as it is claimed only a certain party stand to profit from it.
Gabungan Aktivis Bantah AES (Bantah) coordinator Saifullah Zulkifli, who led the 20-minute gathering, explained that the NGO rejects a system which only serves to “enrich a crony”.
“We do not object to efforts to reduce (road) accidents. What we are angered at is why must a crony company get (the AES contract)?” Saifullah, who is also a PKR Youth activist, said in his speech during the protest.
He further went on to question the excessive number of summons that have been issued ever since the AES was introduced.
“In the span of 14 days, more than 64,000 summons were issued,” he said.
The issue of the AES contract has become a major bone of contention for Pakatan leaders who question the link between Umno and one of the companies awarded the contract to manage the fining system - Beta Tegap Sdn Bhd.
The company, however, have since
denied
its business is connected to Umno in any way alleged.
The gathering was participated by some 30 people, including several parliamentarians and Pakatan politicians, among them Batu MP Tian Chua, Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi, Bukit Bendera MP Liew Chin Tong and Teja assemblyperson Chang Lih Kang.
Participants carried banners depicting the face of Transport Minister Kong Cho Ha and the slogan “Revoke or Resign”, to pressure the minister to terminate the AES.
They also cried out “ Hancur, hancur hancur AES (destroy, destroy, destroy AES)” several times, when cars passed the Parliament security guard’s post.
Liew, in his speech, equated the AES summons to “back door tax” as the Malaysian police summoning system is still being enforced even though the AES has been introduced.
“We can think of this as back door tax because it benefits the crony,” he claimed, repeating Pakatan’s commitment of eliminating the summoning system should the coalition take over Putrajaya.
He also accepted the AES objection memorandum from Saifullah, witnessed by Chang, before the gathering dispersed earlier today.
