The stray dogs’ saga is a tell-tale sign that PH-rule Selangor is deteriorating
AFTER three terms of governing Selangor, the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led government at the state level still has a lot left to be desired.
The pre-2008 PH leaders who managed to take over the state of Selangor from then Barisan Nasional (BN) seemed to be a different breed of leaders. They were more committed and willing to go the extra mile to solve the woes of Selangorians.
For example, when word was passed to one of the state executive councillors that the Panasonic headquarters in Petaling Jaya encountered problems with the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) on one of its projects, Panasonic managing director Jeff Lee was surprised to receive a visit by two state EXCO members who saw the need to intervene in order to forge ahead with its Econation Centre project.
Lee remarked later to this writer: “I could not believe it! The visit by these two state EXCO was unexpected. This has never happened before.” Soon, their state-of-the-art Econation Centre was officially launched with minimum hiccups from the local authority.
Big contrast
However, as seen recently, the issue of stray dogs frequently crops up but efforts by the state government remain lukewarm.
When the dust was kicked up by Shah Alam City Council’s (MBSA) plan to trap-and-cull the stray dogs, nobody at the state government intervened.
It was only after Selangor’s Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin acted in her capacity as the royal patron of the Stray Free Selangor (SFS) campaign that state EXCO in-charge of the local government Ng Suee Lim decided to intervene.
Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin
Lack of commitment from DAP’s Sekinchan state assemblyman alongside that of his state EXCO predecessor Ng Sze Han is the main reason why NGOs and animal lovers are still having to frequently rally behind the dogs on the street whenever a local council gets its hands on the stray animals.
To date, there are no proper procedures established by local authorities along with animal lovers to deal with these street dogs; even if there are, the procedures are not agreeable to the animal lovers.
Last year, representatives from the NGOs were unable to secure an appointment with the Housing and Local Government minister Nga Kor Meng. Instead, they were told to meet up with ministry officials. According to one of the representatives, there is no further development thereafter.
This raises concerns why both the federal and local governments appear oblivious to animal cruelty. At best, the authorities had merely given lip service after the Tengku Permaisuri spoke up against cruelty to the stray animals last year.
Both Nga and Sze Han should have mediated between the NGOs and the local councils to develop a more comprehensive guideline against cruel handling of stray dogs.
Sze Han’s successor and fellow DAP member Suee Lim had suggested the idea for developers to provide land for dog shelter. It is obvious that the former’s suggestion has not been thought through carefully.
Lack of commitment from DAP’s Sekinchan state assemblyman alongside that of his state EXCO predecessor Ng Sze Han is the main reason why NGOs and animal lovers are still having to frequently rally behind the dogs on the street whenever a local council gets its hands on the stray animals.
To date, there are no proper procedures established by local authorities along with animal lovers to deal with these street dogs; even if there are, the procedures are not agreeable to the animal lovers.
Last year, representatives from the NGOs were unable to secure an appointment with the Housing and Local Government minister Nga Kor Meng. Instead, they were told to meet up with ministry officials. According to one of the representatives, there is no further development thereafter.
This raises concerns why both the federal and local governments appear oblivious to animal cruelty. At best, the authorities had merely given lip service after the Tengku Permaisuri spoke up against cruelty to the stray animals last year.
Both Nga and Sze Han should have mediated between the NGOs and the local councils to develop a more comprehensive guideline against cruel handling of stray dogs.
Sze Han’s successor and fellow DAP member Suee Lim had suggested the idea for developers to provide land for dog shelter. It is obvious that the former’s suggestion has not been thought through carefully.
Patrick Khoo Ghee Wong (Image credit: myforeverdoggo via Instagram video)
Uncle Patrick Khoo’s case
Recall that on March 31 last year, senior citizen Patrick Khoo Ghee Wong was charged in court for obstructing MBPJ officers in carrying out his duty. Although health-wise his condition has deteriorated, his case is still pending case management.
What angered most people was when a closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage showed that a tussle took place between Khoo and the enforcement officer who assaulted Khoo. Khoo was subsequently charged in court but the officer was let off with a slap on the wrist.
The whole episode could have been avoided if both the local and state authorities had developed proper procedures to deal with stray animals in a more humane manner.
It is the animal cruelty exercised by the enforcement men that is what riled up animal lovers against both the local councils and state government. – April 4, 2024
Uncle Patrick Khoo’s case
Recall that on March 31 last year, senior citizen Patrick Khoo Ghee Wong was charged in court for obstructing MBPJ officers in carrying out his duty. Although health-wise his condition has deteriorated, his case is still pending case management.
What angered most people was when a closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage showed that a tussle took place between Khoo and the enforcement officer who assaulted Khoo. Khoo was subsequently charged in court but the officer was let off with a slap on the wrist.
The whole episode could have been avoided if both the local and state authorities had developed proper procedures to deal with stray animals in a more humane manner.
It is the animal cruelty exercised by the enforcement men that is what riled up animal lovers against both the local councils and state government. – April 4, 2024
Stray dogs should be called, though in a humane way.
ReplyDelete