KUCHING: The Sarawak State Assembly suspended Chong Chieng Jen (DAP-Kota Sentosa) for accusing state Finance Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud of “controlling 80%” of Sarawak’s development allocations.
The suspension will end next Wednesday, the last day of the current eight-day session.
Thirty-six members voted for Chong’s suspension and two others against. Chong and three DAP colleagues left before the electronic voting was carried out.
State Second Finance Minister Datuk Wong Soon Koh, who tabled the motion to summarily punish Chong for breaching Assembly privileges, said the opposition member had made a “baseless and totally untrue” allegation.
“There is no such thing that 80% of the state development allocations is controlled by one person -- the state finance minister,” he said.
Wong said the development allocations were meant for the implementation of various projects under the different controlling officers of the state’s ministries.
For the state Finance Ministry, the controlling officer is the state Financial Secretary; for other ministries, it is their permanent secretaries, he said.
Chong said his statement -- reported in two Chinese newspapers -- was based on the expenditures of the state’s 2009 budget as RM2.4bil or 80% of the RM3bil development allocation was under the control of the state Finance Ministry.
Wong claimed that Chong’s press statement was calculated to misrepresent the Assembly proceedings, and would erode public confidence and respect for the Assembly and the state Finance Minister.
He said Chong should not be allowed to destroy the integrity of the Assembly, state government and state Finance Minister.
Wong said it was vital for the state to instill confidence in investors as it needed huge investments particularly for the development of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewal Energy.
“Opposition members have a role to play but it must be constructive and not destructive,” he added.
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