Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Salary hike: Is it justified?
- ‘PKR supreme council discussed pay hike’
- MB: Pay decision final, Selangor's hike smaller than Sarawak's
- Massive salary increase shocking, says Johor MB
- Penang DAP election a crowded affair
| Posted: 28 Nov 2013 04:09 PM PST
The salary hike for Selangor's state government officials received mix reactions from netizens. Narinder Singh, FMT The salary hike granted to the Selangor state government officials has received mix reactions from netizens. Some have defended the move done by the menteri besar while others have chided since the quantum involved is significantly high. A Facebook user by the name Tiger Malaya was indeed very vocal in lashing out towards the Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim and Speaker Hannah Yeoh, reminding them on how they had used the "begging approach" in the past general election. "We had trusted you guys based on the 'begging approach' used in the GE13 to get our votes, …our expectations are yet to be fulfilled as most of us still living in poverty but you guys started to show your desperation for multi-fold income with self interests ….instead of the Selangor rakyat's welfare, social status and financial issues," said Tiger Malaya. Tiger Malaya went further by labeling them "greedy political individuals" who were wrong in demanding such salaries for holding public office. While another commenter Rufus Mallu likened the raise as the DBKL assessment hike, that since there has not been a hike for too long, thus it is justified to do so. Rufus says "just like the DBKL assessment hike, this phrase used is similar…long time no increase…so increase 300%!!" Another Facebook user going by the name Tim Price says that as a tax payer in Selangor he finds the hike as 'crazy'; and stresses that "I am not in BN or any other party BUT I am a tax payer….and finding money is very hard, so yes, I do think such big increases are crazy." In denouncing the hike too, a Wilfred Yap took voters to task for voting in the Pakatan Rakyat in the last GE, saying "this is the perfect lesson for all voters of PR. Talk is cheap…..PR is long on promises but short on delivery. People now realise that PR is not and have no intention to follow what they preach." Nevertheless there were others on the social media that felt the salaries' hike is justified for all the works done by the Selangor state government and Khalid thus far. Tai Chee who claims to be from Malacca said "Khalid is doing a good job, better than Najib, that's why his salary is higher. Imagine Khalid change seats with Najib as PM, Malaysia could have paid all its debts already by now."
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| ‘PKR supreme council discussed pay hike’ Posted: 28 Nov 2013 03:53 PM PST
The PKR supreme council chaired by Anwar Ibrahim had discussed the proposed pay hike for Selangor state officials before it was announced, says Elizabeth Wong. Ikhwan Zulkaflee, FMT A special PKR supreme council meeting on Nov 22, chaired by party de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, was informed of the Selangor government's proposal to increase salaries of the Menteri Besar, the state legislative Speaker and excos, a state exco revealed today. State Tourism, Consumer Affairs and Environment exco Elizabeth Wong said Anwar was present during the meeting and the matter was not dismissed by the PKR top brass. "The reaction from the leadership was that it had no objection to the hike and that we have to improve our services and we have to ensure our programmes were carried out," she told reporters when met at the state legislative lobby here today. Wong however said she was not sure if PKR deputy president Azmin Ali was present at the meeting as "there was a big turnout for the meeting". She also said the exact quantum of the pay hike was not discussed at the special PKR supreme council meeting as the state government did not have the figures then. Wong admitted that the pay hike figures were shocking but reasonable. The Selangor state government two days ago announced pay hike for its Menteri Besar from the current RM14,175 to RM29,250 monthly, while the allowance for the Speaker went up from RM6,109 to RM22,500, a month. Elected state assemblymen will also get an allowance revision from the current RM6,000 to RM11,250 a month. State executive councillors on the other hand will get RM20,250 a month from RM6,109 a month. The massive pay increase has irked many including Anwar who wanted the state government to explain the hike. This was followed by Azmin, who is also Bukit Antarabangsa state assemblymen, to question the rationale behind the huge allowance package increase. The Selangor state government is in the hands of the opposition coalition made up of PAS, PKR and DAP, with PKR taking the lead role.
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| MB: Pay decision final, Selangor's hike smaller than Sarawak's Posted: 28 Nov 2013 10:37 AM PST
(fz.com) - "The pay rise is final." Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim said there is no question of withdrawing the big salary rise announced for assemblypersons, pointing out that it had been approved by both Pakatan Rakyat and BN representatives. He said the hike is justifiable as it is based on the recent sharp rise in the salaries of Sarawak assemblypersons. "During the budget meeting, I did say I'm worried about this (pay rise), so I explained to the them (assemblypersons), that if both Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional members agree, I will consider using Sarawak (assemblypersons') salary level as the base for calculation, but the rise will be lower than that. "And everyone agreed," he said in response to the Selangor Backbenchers Club (BBC) chairperson Azmin Ali's call earlier today for the pay hike to be postponed pending a review. Azmin had said that there was supposed to be a study carried out to examine the pay hike proposal, but he hadn't seen it at all. Hence the pay rise should be reviewed. Khalid however, dismissed any possibility of withdrawing the decision. "It is his (Azmin's) right to defer salary payment. For example, if there is a parliamentary salary increase, there are people who accept the rise but then donate it to charity. So they can do this. "If you disagree, leave it or donate it," said Khalid. "Salary has been decided and people will decide if we perform or not," he added. The menteri besar said that the rise is justifiable because Selangor contributes 25% to the nation's GDP. In comparison, Sarawak contributes less than 10%, and yet the revised slaries for Selangor is lower than Sarawak's. "What we did was, we take 75% of Sarawak (assemblyperson's) salaries as the basis of our calculation. So we are not the highest in Malaysia, Sarawak is. "And then of course we are very transparent, we adjust it to the previous salary, if you look at this, the way Sarawak did, their speaker's pay jumped from RM9,000 to RM39,000, (state) minister's pay rose from RM9,000 to RM 27,000. Our increase did not exceed theirs," he said. He added that economists were of the view that salaries of elected representatives in Malaysia is very low, so the hike was reasonable.
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| Massive salary increase shocking, says Johor MB Posted: 28 Nov 2013 08:36 AM PST
(The Star) - The massive salary increase approved by the Selangor state assembly is shocking, especially since the Opposition is constantly chiding Barisan Nasional for not spending money wisely, said Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin. He said the decision made by the Opposition-held state was a contrast to what it had always been preaching. "The increase is too high, especially when compared to the salaries of those at the federal level. "It is now up to the people of Selangor to decide and take a stand on the matter," he said. Mohamed Khaled added that in Johor, they were contemplating an increase in salaries for elected representatives and the Mentri Besar, but the state government would never agree to such a steep rise. "The salaries of our assemblymen, speaker and Mentri Besar have remained the same for many years now and it is time for a change." In Johor, the basic salary of a state representative is RM5,000, the state Speaker's is RM6,109.29 and the Mentri Besar's is RM14,907.20 while an executive councillor earns RM6,500 a month. The state representatives receive additional monthly allowances amounting to about RM3,150 for transportation, driver, phone bill and postage. Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir said its state assemblymen would also like a salary increment as much as what had been given to their Selangor counterparts. "The Selangor MB will be earning two to three times my salary. "But just imagine if a Barisan-led government made such an announcement, what would be the response of the public and those on the other side of the political divide?" Dr Zambry said yesterday. He added that the Selangor state government could afford the salary increases because "they have a lot of money ... it is the capital and all the activities are happening there". "But it is important to look at the effect and the burden the people will face due to their actions," he said. Dr Zambry said that since he took office in 2009, the state government had not conducted a review of its salaries except for a recent increase in the allowance for assemblymen, from RM4,112 to RM6,000 a month. "We want to think first, in terms of actual need and the level of increase. But we feel there is a need for a review in Perak as well, because it has been a long time since one was made," he said. Meanwhile, salaries and allowances of the 40 state assemblymen in Penang are expected to increase by about 84% next year. A source said a proposal for the pay increase would be tabled in the state assembly on Nov 29.
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| Penang DAP election a crowded affair Posted: 28 Nov 2013 08:13 AM PST
The Penang DAP will see stiff competition among four factions in its party's state level election coming Sunday. Hawkeye, FMT Four factions have emerged to battle this Sunday in the Penang state level DAP elections, where 49 candidates were nominated to vie for 15 slots in its committee line-up. Party insiders, who preferred not to be named due to the sensitive nature of the issue, said the four factions are those allied to secretary-general and Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, party veterans, personalities who were dropped or sidelined in the last general election and the party's upstarts. Those likely to gain attention are the upstarts led by Jagdeep Singh Deo, the eldest son of party chairman Karpal Singh; the outspoken Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi; environmentalist Teh Yee Cheu, the Tanjung Bungah assemblyman as well as Seri Delima assemblyman R.S.N Rayer and Ong Ah Teong – a hard working Penang municipal councillor. Not to be discounted are the veterans led by the present state DAP chairman Chow Kon Yeow, DAP Wanita head Chong Eng, Phee Boon Poh, his brother Phee Boon Chee, Lim Hock Seng, Danny Law Heng Kiang and A Tanasekharan. Guan Eng's faction is said to be led by his political secretaries Ng Wei Aik and Zairil Khir Johari and Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim. Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr P Ramasamy is also touted as one of the state-level leaders who has a strong chance of faring well due to his work with the Indian community and his position in the government. While the faction which is said to be fighting for their 'political survival' are those sidelined, namely former Pulau Tikus assemblyman Koay Teng Hai and former Sungai Pinang assemblyman Koid Teng Guan. Insiders said this election mainly concerns the fate of Ng, Zairil, Jagdeep, Ooi, Koay and the veterans, with rumours persisting that two of them – Chow and Hock Seng – are considering making way for younger talent in the next few years. The insiders claimed that some quarters in DAP see Ng, Zairil and Sim as 'young men in a hurry', who may not realise that in their quest to reach their political goals, they are stepping on the toes of many 'warlords' in the state.
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