DAP senator Ariffin Omar has hit out at state opposition leader Jahara Hamid and two other Umno assemblypersons for snubbing their appointments to the important Penang Transport Council (PTC).

The trio were supposed to be a part of the 54-member body, which includes NGO activists, all of whom received their appointment letters to the PTC on June 14 when the council’s first meeting was held.

Ariffin questioned the Umno representatives' role as the wakil rakyat (people’s representative), when they refuse to contribute towards the betterment of the people and the state by serving on the PTC.

He described the behaviour of Jahara, Nordin Ahmad (BN-Bayan Lepas) and Shah Headan Ayoob Hussein Shah (BN-Telok Bahang) as “not just regrettable, but contemptible”.

“When an opportunity is given for the state opposition to present its views as well as represent a dissenting point of view on a project of importance, they abdicate their responsibilities,” the DAP vice-chairperson told Malaysiakini when contacted.

“No plan is perfect and this includes the PTC plan. So why not examine it critically and contribute to making it better?” he asked.

Meaningful role

On June 13, Jahara issued a statement saying the BN representatives did not turn up for the inaugural PTC meeting, as they have yet to receive the terms of reference so they could review the roles and functions and the scope of power of the post.

Members of the PTC are tasked with being advisers to the state government on the issue of public transport, including the state’s plan to address traffic congestion via the RM27 billion transport master plan.

Ariffin said that in Penang, despite its imperfections, the ruling party DAP was willing to give the opposition a role and meaningful function which unfortunately they chose to turn down.

In contrast, he said, in states run by the Umno-BN government, the opposition was treated as a problem and a nuisance and was not allowed to function meaningfully.

“Do the opposition leaders in Penang really understand their role and function?” Ariffin asked.

“It is high time to move away from the destructive antagonism that has characterised the relationship between ruling parties and the opposition in Malaysia's states,” he said.

Ariffin noted in any democracy, the opposition could end up becoming the ruling government and the ruling party could likewise end up being the opposition.

He said the time may have come for the electorate to reject politicians who can only think in terms of party interests and cannot represent the interests of the people.

'Acting like kids'

Ariffin said the three Umno representatives could have suggested the terms of reference and even the scope of power (or influence) they wished, instead of just waiting for the state government to do it.

He added that the issue here was to bring all interested parties together to discuss and come up with an acceptable plan.

“Nobody gets all that they want - this will (always) be the case, but compromises are possible,” he said.

“After all, we have accepted motions from them in the past in the state assembly,” he recalled, referring to Umno’s motion to halt reclamation projects in Penang, which was intensely debated at last November’s sitting.

“Unfortunately, they behave like kids who want to have their cake and eat it at the same time. In that respect, the Umno wakil are not mature,” he added.