Once they called for ELECTIONS - but now angry cause their people not appointed to Local Councils..sad

What has happened to the call for Local Council elections....

Now, what is happening is disappointment being expressed about who did and did not get appointed, and racial quotas, etc..

The recent protest, as reported in Star, comes from the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) and their complain is that none of the people their MP in Sungai Siput wanted has been chosen to be in the local council .... how sad is this..

I expected more from PSM - I expected that they would have still be in the forefront calling for Local Council Elections... (But alas that struggle has been compromised when several leaders in the party accepted appointment in the Local Councils in Selangor...)

Perak's 338 local councillors are scheduled to be sworn in Friday but protests and dissatisfaction over the list of appointments seem unending.

The latest to express their disappointment are Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members from Sungai Siput.

Sungai Siput PSM branch secretary M. Sukumaran handed over a memorandum on the matter to Perak Local Government, Housing and Public Transport Committee chairman Nga Kor Ming.

Sukumaran said Sungai Siput MP Dr D. Jeyakumar had sent a letter recommending four people to be councillors for the Kuala Kangsar Municipal Council. - Star, 17/7/2008, PSM upset over local council appointments

And sadly, their argument is that since Selangor appointed 3 PSM leaders, why Perak should also not do likewise...?

If Selangor could select three PSM leaders for councillor posts, there was no reason why the Pakatan Rakyat government in Perak should marginalise the party here, he said.- Star, 17/7/2008, PSM upset over local council appointments

When Barisan Nasional ruled, it appointed members of its coalition parties into the local council. At that time the Opposition parties and civil society groups was out there calling for Local Council Elections..

And now, when Pakatan Rakyat rules, it is ALSO appointing members of its coalition parties into the local councils. The others are chosen by the government of the day - not the People.

Of course, the once Opposition political parties, now in government in 5 states, are no longer calling for Local Council Elections..

Sadly, civil society too had sold out when many of their leaders/personalities did accept appointment as Local Councilors. There is no more that strong demand for Local Council Elections...

Now, this call and campaign for Local Council Elections must be taken over by the People, and Civil Society Organizations (where non of their leaders are currently sitting in Local Councils).

I call on all those civil society personalities who have accepted appointment to re-consider and resign, and let us all again push at least for Local Council elections in the states being governed by the Pakatan Rakyat. There should also be elections at all levels - kampung, taman, .... We must empower the people - and get them more and more involved in at least local government at every levels..