DON'T SHOOT FROM THE HIP: GERAKAN

By: GERAKAN MEDIA

SABAH DAP Chairman cum Sri Tanjung State assemblyman, Jimmy Wong, has been urged to make constructive criticism that comes with proposals or solutions to issues, instead of shooting wildly-and-blindly from the hip.

Urging this was Jacky Wong, Gerakan Sabah Youth Committee member. He was responding to Jimmy’s displeasure and contention over the State oil palm industry over dependence on foreign workers, during the State Legislative Assembly sitting, recently.

Jimmy had contended that such a trend is not beneficial to the State in the long term, citing that not only it is incurring heavy losses to the State in terms of foreign exchange, but is also posing an imminent security threat.

In a rebuttal issued here today, Jacky questioned whether Jimmy understands its far-reaching adverse implication, if the oil palm plantations were to stop hiring foreign workers, when it is a common knowledge that the industry is shunned by the locals mainly due to its laborious nature.

He contended that Jimmy’s statement was tantamount to asking the oil palm planters to ‘commit suicide’, as they would bound to incur heavy losses when the fruits are left to rot, if they were to stop hiring foreign workers to harvest the fruits.

This would indirectly deal a severe blow to the State economy, citing the fact that oil palm industry is currently a major revenue earner for the State.

Jacky also reminded Jimmy of the fact that the industry also employed a sizeable number of locals at managerial and clerical level.

“If the planters were to stop hiring foreign workers, the entire oil palm industry may collapse and, eventually even the local workers too will be out of job. Who are going to feed their families then, and not forgetting its ripple effect on the other related industries? Could you see the far-reaching implication of your statement?” he asked.

He thus questioned whether Jimmy has a hidden agenda to undermine the economy of the State, and the credibility of the Barisan Nasional (BN) State government, ultimately.

He further reminded that Jimmy had once portrayed himself as the defender of the oil palm planters by urging the State Government not to levy the sales tax on oil palm, in the State Assembly.

“But today, he is trying to ‘kill’ the planters by casting bad lights on them. Being an Elected Representative, he (Jimmy) should be accountable for what he had said in the past, and not simply making statement which contradicts his previous statement. We welcome constructive criticism but not baseless assumption or accusation with no constructive suggestion,” he reiterated.