PETALING JAYA: The Election Commission (EC) has been asked to relax the Sarawak State Election standard operating procedures (SOP) to ensure that the holding of “clean, free and fair election” is not curbed on the specious ground of preventing the spread of Covid-19 infection.

Everybody agrees that in the Sarawak general election, everyone must not take their eyes off from the Covid-19 pandemic and must do everything possible to prevent Covid-19 infections, but this should not be used as an excuse to prevent the holding of a “clean, free and fair” election, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang said today.

“It is on these grounds that I disagree with some of the SOPs for the Sarawak general election which had been announced.

“For instance, there is no reason for limiting inter-state travel for campaign to five top leaders of a party, which is to curb ‘clean, free and fair’ election rather than to curb the spread of Covid-19 infection,” Lim said in a statement.

There is also no justification to confine ceramahs to 64 named constituencies on the ground of “poor internet access”, he pointed out.

“What is important is to comply with Covid-19 SOPs to prevent the spread of Covid-19 infections and not whether there is internet access or not.

“If the named 60 constituencies can hold ceramahs if they comply with the Covid-19 SOPs, there is no reason why all constituencies cannot hold ceramahs if the Covid-19 SOPs are similarly complied with – unless the reason is to help particular political parties by giving them an unfair advantage in the Sarawak general election in the balance of the 22 constituencies through methods which are the very opposite of ‘clean, free and fair’ election,” the Iskandar Puteri MP added.

PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak’s(pix) solicitors Shafee & Co had submitted a request to the appeals court late last night to postpone the hearing for the SRC International case after one of his lawyers tested positive for Covid-19, The Malaysian Insight reports.

According to the report, the prosecution confirmed this earlier today that lead defence counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah wrote to the court with its request last night.

The Court of Appeals has fixed Tuesday for the hearing of Najib’s application to examine Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki and SRC International Sdn Bhd MACC investigating officer Rosli Hussein to adduce more evidence regarding the statement issued on Nov 19 claiming that US$15.94 million was recovered from former Bank Negara Malaysia Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz’s husband Datuk Ayman Tawfik in Singapore.

Justice Datuk Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil, who leads the three-member bench, had fixed Wednesday to deliver the long-awaited decision of the former premier’s appeal after the panel last heard submissions on the matter on May 18.

Najib, 68, the Pekan member of Parliament and former Umno president, was convicted of all seven counts of charges in relation to SRC.

He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and a RM210 million fine in July 2020 for his part in the misappropriation of RM42 million in SRC International funds during his time in office.

KAPIT: The legacy left behind by the late Tan Sri Dr James Masing, the Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister who died on Oct 31, is deeply etched in the hearts of the people of Baleh, the State Legislative Assembly constituency that he had represented for almost 40 years.

Unlike the perception of those who have yet to set foot in the area, which is still fresh thanks to its natural surroundings, Baleh, which is located in the interior of central Sarawak, has undergone a lot of changes due to the development that had taken place during that period.

A local leader in Ulu Gaat, Baleh, penghulu (village headman) Bunsu Gerinang, 80, has experienced the many difficulties of living in the area when it could only be reached via the river.

“Previously, to travel by boat from Ulu Gaat to Kapit, which is the nearest town, would take us about three hours. Apart from that, the journey was perilous, the cost of petrol was high because we had to use barrels of petrol for our outboard engines,” he told Bernama.

Now, that is just a memory following the robust development that began with the Baleh Hydroelectric Dam that is located about 105 kilometres (km) from Kapit town, and which has proven to be the catalysit for the growth of other projects in the area.

These projects included the 73km road facility from Nanga Mujong to Nanga Antawau costing RM1.2 billion that has been completed and used by the residents in the surrounding areas, thus making it easier for residents to commute to Kapit by land vehicles.

“There are also more cars now. Petrol usage is also less because with a full tank, one can commute to Kapit and move around the village. Even getting to Kapit takes only two hours,” said Bunsu.

According to him, there is now electricity supply to longhouses under his care while pipes for water supply from the river are also being installed.

“If this is not a form of development, then what else can be described as development? Outsiders who do not know what actually took place here should not try to compare the development carried out in Baleh with that in Kuala Lumpur because that is not fair,” he said.

Bunsu said that he and several other longhouse chiefs had planned to start a fish farming project in cages at the Baleh Hydroelectric Dam when it is ready and they expect the project to raise the income of those who take part.

With this development, Bunsu hopes that whoever replaces the late Masing as Baleh assemblyman after the 12th Sarawak State Election will be able to continue developing the area for the convenience of the people.

Longhouse chief Kilau Ugap said those claiming that no development had taken place in Baleh were those who had never been to the area before or witnessed the changes that had taken place over the years.

“Come and see for yourself the changes that have taken place. All along Sungai Baleh, Sungai Batang Rajang and Sungai Mujong, there are various development projects. There are schools and clinics, telecommunication systems are being set up and electricity supply using solar energy has also been implemented. The Bukit Mabong District Office has also been set up to facilitate the people’s dealings with the government,” he said.

Another longhouse chief, Jimbun Ajai said that his longhouse in Pulau Won was now close to enjoying electricity supply.

“The electrical wirings in the house have been done and all that is left now is to install the meter,” he said.

In addition, residents in longhouses are now able to enjoy Internet facility with the installation of the WiFi ConnectMe hotspot system by the government.

“We have been waiting patiently for this Internet facility for a long time and finally we have got it. We are grateful because this facility can help our children follow the home-based teaching and learning method (PdPR),” he said.

He added that the longhouse residents wanted the legacy of development carried out by the late Masing to be continued by his successor.

Masing, who was the Baleh assemblyman since 1983, died at the age of 72. He was also the president of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), one of the component parties of the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) that formed the state government.

In the 12th Sarawak State Election, which enters its second day of campaigning today, the Baleh seat will see a four-cornered contest, involving the nephew of the late Masing, Nicholas Kudi Jantai Masing of GPS, Kenneth Usang George Lagong of DAP, Irwan Iskandar Sukarno Layau of Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) and Koh Kumbong of Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB).

In the 11th state election in 2016, Masing won the seat after obtaining 5,272 votes while DAP’s Agop Linsong garnered only 479 votes.

The Election Commission (EC) has set early voting on Dec 14 and polling on Dec 18.-Bernama

PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry reported a total of 38 new Covid-19 fatalities yesterday.

Eight were classified as brought-in-dead (BID). The death toll now stands at 30,652.

Selangor recorded the most number of deaths with 6, followed by Perak (5), Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Kuala Lumpur (4 each), Pahang and Sabah (3 each), Melaka (2) and Johor, Negeri Sembilan and Sarawak (1 each).

There were no deaths in Perlis, Labuan and Putrajaya.

As of midnight, there were 60,329 active cases including 463 in Intensive Care Units (ICU), 249 of whom require respiratory assistance.

The total number of Covid-19 cases recorded in Malaysia stands at 2,663,034.

KUALA LUMPUR: The issues related to the rising prices of basic necessities faced by the people are among the highlights of the Dewan Rakyat sitting today.

According to the Order Paper, the matter will be raised during the Minister's Question Time by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim(pix) (PH-Port Dickson).

He is scheduled to ask the Prime Minister about the immediate action and effective measures to be taken by the National Action Council on Cost of Living in the short, medium and long term to address the the issue.

There will be also a question from Abdul Latiff Abdul Rahman (PAS-Kuala Krai) to the Prime Minister on the action taken by the government so that Muslims in the country are not left behind in the Malaysian Family concept which was launched on Oct 23.

Abdul Latiff also wanted to know whether the concept would also help Muslim entrepreneurs who are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, Sivakumar Varatharaju Naidu (PH-Batu Gajah) will be asking the National Unity Minister on the standard operating procedure (SOP) drafted for the Thaipusam Day celebration on Jan 18, next year to enable temples involved and the devotees to make early preparations for the celebration.

Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah (BN-Lenggong) will seek clarification on the measures to increase household income, especially for the lower-income groups (B40).

The sitting will also continue with the debate and winding up of the Supply Bill 2022 (Budget 2022) at the committee stage.

The Dewan Rakyat will sit until Dec 16.-Bernama