Politicians and local councils
By Zedeck Siew, The Nut Graph
THE spat between Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and DAP over the appointment of Majlis Perbandaran Seberang Perai (MPSP) president Mokhtar Mohd Jait began with a boycott, by PKR councillors, of Mokhtar's swearing in.
This then led to DAP leaders calling for the resignation of Johari Kassim, the PKR whip in MPSP which led the boycott.
The contention? Mokhtar was a civil servant, appointed by the DAP-led Penang government. According to Johari, the council presidency had previously been promised to a PKR politician. Soon, certain quarters began speculating on a possible rift within the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition and this was, of course, how some media eventually tried to frame the issue.
But above the political infighting within PR, the skirmish speaks to a more important issue that has been sidestepped by politicians and most media. That is, how one level of government is run by political appointees, rather than by representatives elected by the people. Nowhere in the MPSP saga, after all, was the Seberang Prai population's opinions on the matter sought. Indeed, PKR's Johari actually slammed Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for failing to consult PKR, not the people, when deciding on the council president.
