Local polls will narrow polarisation gap: Chan

Kota Kinabalu: It is ridiculous to claim that local council elections would be costly for taxpayers and create greater racial polarisation, said DAP Sabah Vice Chief Chan Foong Hin.He said if the claim by Urban Wellbeing, Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan was right, similar logic could be applied to parliamentary and state elections as well.

"But why do we hold the elections?" he asked, Sunday.

Contrary to Abdul Rahman's claim, Chan who is also Sri Tanjong Assemblyman pointed out that local council elections would narrow the racial polarisation gap.

"Every day I receive a lot of complaints mostly pertaining to local community livelihood issues such as no streetlights, clogged drains, uncollected rubbish and etc.

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"I believe other elected representatives have a similar experience as well. In fact, this kind of issues is more related to the jurisdiction of local council and very least connected to the State Assembly legislature work.

"If Malaysia has local council elections, then the councillors would be more willing to listen to the people as they are elected by the people.

"The features of local community livelihood issues are not racial-oriented. Maybe Malaysians from different kinds of background would have different ideas on education, for instance, English used as the teaching language of Mathematics and Science preferred by certain group but against by another group.

"But I don't think that there is difference between a Malay hawker and a Chinese hawker when they make the complaint against the inefficient market management by local council," he said.

According to Chan, the gap between different ethnic groups could be brought closer if Malaysians start to debate the local community issues more deliberately.

He said the local community would be more empowered by letting them choose their own mayor, town port president, village head and etc.

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"The decentralisation and devolution of power from federal and state Ministry of Local Government would make local councils more efficient to respond to the people needs.

"The end of racial polarisation would start with local council elections. Local community members would have a better sense of belonging once they share the same value, same consensus and same destiny as they decide for their own, for the very basic livelihood issues."

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