Penang gov't grilled for 'flawed' hawkers poll
Susan LoonePublished: Jul 28, 2014 9:41 AM | Updated: Jul 28, 2014 9:48 AM
MCA has poured cold water on the Penang government's public poll to obtain feedback on the state's proposal to ban foreign cooks in hawker centers.
MCA has poured cold water on the Penang government's public poll to obtain feedback on the state's proposal to ban foreign cooks in hawker centers.
The poll, which includes a street poll, was launched on Friday by state cabinet member Chow Kon Yeow at the famous Chowrasta Market, along Penang Road.
It will be conducted by 50 staff from the Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) for a month, ending on Aug 31.
MCA Penang state liaison committee secretary Tan Chuan Hong poohed the online poll claiming there was a possibility of duplicate responses with the same persons replying to the survey more than once.
"The Penang state government led by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng practises 'fake democracy' whereby he claimed to listen to public feedback, but in fact, since a respondent can vote in the survey more than once, this opens a loophole for repetitive voting," said Tan, in a statement today.
"Any survey which enables the same individual to reply more than once is without any credibility," he added.
"It also shows the DAP-helmed Penang state government has no sincerity, much less professionalism in conducting online polls.
"He should withdraw such an online poll and apologise to all Penangites," Tan said.
Lim cooked up a storm when he announced the proposed ban, saying the state wants to preserve the authenticity of Penang's unique cuisine famous throughout the world.
However, Lim's proposal predictably attracted brickbats, among them famous Malaysian chef Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, who said Malaysia would be a "laughingstock" if the foreign cook ban is implemented.
But Lim accepted the criticism graciously, saying the ban would only be enforced after the state obtains feedback from the public.
He also clarified that the ban only applies to street hawkers and those hankering in food complexes and markets.
The problem Lim is attempting to address is not a new one, and many have griped before about traditional street food now being dished out by foreign workers from Indonesia, Bangladesh and Myanmar in particular, who had largely entered the country as labourers.
State to address duplicate polling
In an immediate response to the alleged loophole in the online survey, the MPPP licensing department standing committee chairperson Ong Ah Teong said the authorities are already aware of the problem.
"We will be looking into the matter on Wednesday, after the Hari Raya holidays," Ong told Malaysiakini.
"We can only make sure there are no duplicate forms by checking the identity cards of the respondents," he added.
"Anyway, we would be looking closely at the street polls, where our officers have managed to fill 100 forms in an hour when they started the job on Friday," Ong said.
Ong added that the state was targeting about 10,000 respondents to fill the public feedback forms.
He added that the MPPP officers conducting the street survey are armed with a simple questionnaire, and are visiting hawker centres and markets to interview people on their opinion on the proposed ban.
The questions include: 1) do you agree to foreign cooks; 2) If the answer is NO, please state your reasons and; 3) do you agree for the hawkers licenses to be revoked if they engage foreign cooks?
The poll, which includes a street poll, was launched on Friday by state cabinet member Chow Kon Yeow at the famous Chowrasta Market, along Penang Road.
It will be conducted by 50 staff from the Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) for a month, ending on Aug 31.
MCA Penang state liaison committee secretary Tan Chuan Hong poohed the online poll claiming there was a possibility of duplicate responses with the same persons replying to the survey more than once.
"The Penang state government led by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng practises 'fake democracy' whereby he claimed to listen to public feedback, but in fact, since a respondent can vote in the survey more than once, this opens a loophole for repetitive voting," said Tan, in a statement today.
"Any survey which enables the same individual to reply more than once is without any credibility," he added.
"It also shows the DAP-helmed Penang state government has no sincerity, much less professionalism in conducting online polls.
"He should withdraw such an online poll and apologise to all Penangites," Tan said.
Lim cooked up a storm when he announced the proposed ban, saying the state wants to preserve the authenticity of Penang's unique cuisine famous throughout the world.
However, Lim's proposal predictably attracted brickbats, among them famous Malaysian chef Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, who said Malaysia would be a "laughingstock" if the foreign cook ban is implemented.
But Lim accepted the criticism graciously, saying the ban would only be enforced after the state obtains feedback from the public.
He also clarified that the ban only applies to street hawkers and those hankering in food complexes and markets.
The problem Lim is attempting to address is not a new one, and many have griped before about traditional street food now being dished out by foreign workers from Indonesia, Bangladesh and Myanmar in particular, who had largely entered the country as labourers.
State to address duplicate polling
In an immediate response to the alleged loophole in the online survey, the MPPP licensing department standing committee chairperson Ong Ah Teong said the authorities are already aware of the problem.
"We will be looking into the matter on Wednesday, after the Hari Raya holidays," Ong told Malaysiakini.
"We can only make sure there are no duplicate forms by checking the identity cards of the respondents," he added.
"Anyway, we would be looking closely at the street polls, where our officers have managed to fill 100 forms in an hour when they started the job on Friday," Ong said.
Ong added that the state was targeting about 10,000 respondents to fill the public feedback forms.
He added that the MPPP officers conducting the street survey are armed with a simple questionnaire, and are visiting hawker centres and markets to interview people on their opinion on the proposed ban.
The questions include: 1) do you agree to foreign cooks; 2) If the answer is NO, please state your reasons and; 3) do you agree for the hawkers licenses to be revoked if they engage foreign cooks?
View Comments0