No Mercedes-Benz, No Proton Perdana, No BMW ...

Should State Exco members be given new cars to travel about? That is the question that we have to answer.

In Trengganu, the issue is whether Mercedes-Benz E200 Kompressor or Proton Perdana V6, and that is definitely not the correct question at all.

State Exco members, and State Assemblymen chosen by the Menteri Besar, appointed by the Sultan, to govern the state. They are the executive arm of the the state. They are at the end of the peoples' representatives...yes the representative of the ordinary fisherman, farmer, civil servant, retail shop owner, policeman, .... and he has been elected to serve the people.

Hence, why waste money getting them new cars - do they not have their own cars?

What should be done is that the state government should be paying them mileage, maintenance and other transport allowance/s maybe for the depreciation of the value of their cars. There is no necessity of getting them new cars...

Wakil rakyat...or peoples' representatives should not be pushed into some 'upper-class status' making them so different from the people they represent... and this will slowly slowly make them isolated from the rakyat they represent.

In fact, even that "Yang Berhormat" (Honourable) or "Yang Amat Berhormat" (Most Honourable) must be dropped because it only serves to distant the elected reps from the lives and the people that they represent. In fact, the better term may be "Yang Berkhidmat" (The one who serves) may be a better way of calling them. That is why I would call all most of the time by the names their parents gave them, the names that they are called by friends - rather than the YB, YAB, Datuk this and Datuk Seri that...

back to them cars - nobody, be it the Menteri Besar (or the PM, or the DPM) or the State Exco (or Cabinet Members) should ever be given NEW (and/or expensive cars) to travel in. They can and should always be using their own cars - with the appropiate allowances given.

And with regard to cars for the usage of foreign dignitaries - of course, we must use our own Malaysian cars - and not some BMWs and/or Mercedes-Benz. Is our Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi embarassed about the cars that Malaysia produces, for him to suggest that these Benz be used for foreign dignitaries only..

On Friday, Abdullah had announced that all the Mercedes-Benzes bought by the state for its executive council members could only be used for foreign dignitaries. - Star Online, 27/7/2008 -Exco men use Merc despite Cabinet order

In any event, is this not a State matter - and why is Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister, an elected MP from Penang (not Trengganu) butting in a matter that should be a Trengganu state matter. I am sure that the cars that the MB, State Exco members use or the State Government buys is not in the Federal List in our Federal Constitution, and comes within the jurisdiction of the Federal Government.

Soon, our Prime Minister will be telling what colour blazer the MBs and State Exco members should be wearing.

At the end of the day, I say that there must be no cars - be it Benzs or Protons given to the Menteri Besar and/or State Exco members to travel around with...They should just use their own cars, and given the normal travelling allowances.

Civil servants, state or Federal, are expected to use their own cars and only get travelling claims - so why should there be any different with MBs and State Excos - and when a car is one's own, more care will also be taken with regard to maintenance, etc.

In fact, there may be no need for the State to even have a few cars for them visiting foreign dignitaries - it may be cheaper to just hire limos/cars as and when needed. This would surely save a lot of money.

For too long, the State governments have been wasting money, when money could have been better spent to erase poverty and improve the quality of life of its people - I thought our Ahmad Said, the new MB of Trengganu would be different, when I saw him questioning the unnecessary projects/spending of the previous government - the Crystal Mosque, etc...

Hope that in the Pakatan Rakyat states, things are different and monies are not wasted on expensive cars, uniforms/clothes, functions... but on the correct things for the betterment of its people...

Saudara MB and EXCO members, why do you want to drive around in big expensive cars? To show-off??