HAVE NO BUSINESS DEALINGS WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES, MINISTER TELLS COUNCILLORS

KUCHING: Councillors in Sarawak should steer away from doing business with the councils or influence the award of contracts because it is not only against the law, but erodes the people’s confidence in councils they represent.

Environment and Public Health Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh said councillors are also prohibited from naming nominees as their proxies in business deals with the councils.

Speaking at the opening of a seminar for councillors in southern zone here yesterday, he said he agreed with the decision to invite Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to present a paper at the seminar.

Since there are many new councillors who start their term this year, he viewed the session with MACC as an important segment of the seminar to brief them on the dos and don’ts in their duties as councillors.

“As councillors, we should not meddle with the council’s business like project implementation and so on. It’s not just about involving ourselves directly, but we also cannot nominate nominees to do the business for us.

“Whatever the case, we must declare our interests to avoid any conflict,” he said.

Wong, whose portfolio covers local councils, said councillors are not supposed to have any hidden interests in projects carried out by their councils, even if the councillor is interested in projects in areas covered by other councils.

“I was asked by some councillors ‘what about doing business with other councils in other parts of Sarawak like Samarahan councillors doing business with Lundu council?’.

“My answer is ‘try to avoid, try to avoid’… (Because) we will be accused of conflict of interests,” he said.

With the change in the political landscape after the 2008 general election, he said it was best that councillors focus their efforts to win the hearts and minds of the people so that the Barisan Nasional (BN) would continue to be in power.

As councillors are political appointees from the four state BN component parties, he said they must not only carry themselves well, but also be conversant in policies of the councils and the BN government.

“All of us must work together as a team irrespective of the component party we represent or the racial group we come from because if the BN is not in power, all of us will not be here, somebody else will be appointed.

“You cannot expect Lim Guan Eng, the chief minister of Penang, to appoint BN members to sit in his office or council. Likewise we are not expected to appoint anyone from the opposition parties,” he said.