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©New
Straits Times (Used by permission)
by Azmi Anshar
DEWAN RAKYAT, Aug 21, 2008: There it rears its delectably
ubiquitous head again inside the House. PERMATANG PAUH. And, unsurprisingly, by
the father and son tag team of the Honourables Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng.
As the first by-election after the watershed March 8 polls, the Permatang Pauh
hustings is now deeply entrenched in the national political psyche, at least for
now until polling day next week. Expect the results to reverberate for the whole
of the fasting month come September with wildly unpredictable gyrations.
The senior Lim (DAP–Ipoh Timor) invoked the two Ps as if it
was bleeding out of life inside the House, chiding the absence of Tourism
Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman (BN–Pengerang) and her deputy, Datuk Seri
Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib (BN–Kota Saramahan), during Question Hour to respond
to his query on tourism billboards.
"There is no Minister, no Deputy Minister. Only the name plaques are here...
they have all gone to campaign at Permatang Pauh. This is an embarrassment for
the Barisan Nasional,” he roared, with one eye checking on the feedback to make
sure that his reproach resonates beyond the House and into the minds of
Permatang Pauh voters hundreds of kilometres away.
The faithful in the Opposition bloc thumped their tables giddily in solid
approval at Kit’s opportunistic salvo while their steely-eyed BN backbenchers
across the political divide retaliated against the mini-pandemonium with jeers
and protests.
But who from the Government was game enough to respond to Kit after Deputy
Speaker Datuk Ronald Kiandee asked if any Ministers present wanted to represent
the Tourism Ministry? Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad
immediately volunteered but Kit protested, dismissing the gesture as empty. "He
does not know anything (on tourism matters). How could you get him to answer?"
Kit demanded but Kiandee allowed Latiff to proceed.
In unexpected situations like this, Latiff produced what
appeared to be an improvised but predictable response – installation of tourism
billboards is ongoing, no details on cost and will submit further information
via written reply. The Opposition bloc’s howls of disapprobation seemed to
resemble a pack of wolves circling Little Red Riding Hood.
With a little smirk and loads of mischief, Lim posed a supplementary question to
Latiff: Were there scientific studies conducted on billboards with pictures of
the country's leaders that had aided tourism promotion? This time, Latiff
produced a canned response, courtesy of a answer sheet that was hastily passed
over by a Tourism Ministry official.
“Billboards with pictures of the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and
Azalina are part of efforts to promote the country to local and foreign
tourists,” he duly read out the sheet. "No one had said the pictures had
resulted in any negative effects. But we have no problem in conducting a
scientific study on this matter.”
Outside the House, the junior Lim echoed what Dad poked inside the House but
with a silver twist: Guan Eng could not understand why Olympian silver medallist
Lee Chong Wei had to be bestowed his RM300,000 cash reward at, of all places,
Permatang Pauh when Kuala Lumpur was the ideal location for such glitz. Junior
also charged that the BN exploited the award presentation to boost their
by-election campaign.
Irony, though, was not part of the scheme. The Penang Chief Minister did after
all push for a Datukship to be conferred to the shuttler but he was more worked
up by the “location” of where Lee Chong Wei accepted his lucre, accusing the
Barisan Nasional Government, the Deputy Prime Minister in particular, of
manipulation and abusing government machinery by flying the silver medalist from
Kuala Lumpur to Penang's Butterworth Air Force base.
The DAP secretary-general was swift to self-righteously explain that when he and
fellow party members campaigned, they use private cars instead of official
vehicles. "Why spend money to fly him all the way to Penang when the ceremony
can be held in Kuala Lumpur?” chimed Junior at the Parliament lobby today. “This
clearly shows improper use of government facilities for political purposes. Is
the Deputy Prime Minister using the base for campaign purpose?
So, the Datukship manufactured for Lee Chong Wei was not an inducement to
voters? That what the BN can give to Chong Wei, the Pakatan Rakyat can do as
well? Apparently not. “The conferment will be conducted after the by-election.
We don't want to be seen as taking advantage of the situation,” he deadpanned.
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Circular No 297/2008
