Speech by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, at the closing of the second DAPSY Political Workcamp at Port Dickson on Sunday, 15th March, 1992 at 3 pm.
Call on Dr. Ting Chew Peh whether his Ministry has a master-plan to rehouse the 400,000-500,000 people who would be affected by the repeal of the Rent Control Act.
I commend DAPSY for organising a second political workcamp in Port Dickson to deepen the political consciousness and commitment of Malaysian youths towards the creation of a democratic, free, just and united Malaysian nation.
We want to encourage more young Malaysians to dedicate themselves to politics, not to serve themselves, but to serve their political ideals, the people and nation and in the process, contribute towards the creation of a better world and life for everyone in Malay¬sia and outside.
Those who wish to serve themselves should not join politics – may be MCA, Gerakan and the Barisan Nasional, but definitely not the DAP.
For our ideals and beliefs, we must be prepared to be tested and tried from loss of our liberty when detained under the Internal Security Act to various forms of pressures and harassments.
The most recent example is the MCA’s propaganda campaign of lies against the DAP and its leaders.
We must remain steadfast in our convictions and commitment to strive for a better society for the people, and not allow any strategy or tactics of our political opponents to deflect us from our purpose.
Ting Chew Peh ‘kowtowing for five measures of rice’
In yesterday’s press for instance, the MCA Secretary-General and Minister for Housing and Local Government, Dr. Ting Chew Peh, issued a most scrupulous and abusive statement attacking me for my various statements scrutinising his dismal failure as Housing Minister, particularly in the Special Low Cost Housing Programme (SLCHP).
When I read Dr. Tings abusive statement, I do not feel anger but only pity and sadness that an intellectual could have sunk so low as to be prepared ‘to kowtow for five measures of rice’.
I am not prepared to sink to Dr. Ling’s level and trade abuses with him but will continue to monitor and expose the short¬comings, shortfalls and failures of the Ministry of Housing under Dr. Ting Chew Peh.
A person only resorts to abuses when he has lost the argu¬ment, Dr. Ting is in fact behaving like a child who stamps his feet and shout ‘I don’t want to play anymore’, when he finds that he could not get his way.
Dr. Ting’s statement in the press yesterday is the best proof that he has lost all his ‘intellectual-ness’ after his joining the MCA. May be Dr. Ting now knows why real intellectuals do not want to join the MCA.
Dr. Ting said I know nothing about housing, but he has not been able to respond rationally to all the points that I have made which caused me to describe the Ministry of Housing and Local Government
as the most inefficient and incompetent Federal Ministry in Malaysia and Dr. Ting as the most ineffective and impotent Housing Minister in Malaysian history.
Kit Siang to produce more proof that Housing Ministry the most inefficient and incompetent Federal Ministry and Dr. Ting Chew Peh the most ineffective and impotent Housing Minister in April Parliament.
I am prepared to give Dr. Ting more time to gather materials to rebut these two allegations, for I am giving him advance notice that I will be producing more proof in the April meeting of Parliament to substantiate my allegations that the Housing Ministry is the most inefficient and incompetent Federal Ministry and Dr. Ting Chew the most ineffective and impotent Housing Minister in history.
Dr. Ting said he does not have to explain to me about the Special Low Cost Housing Programme (SLCHP). Firstly, there is nothing for Dr. Ting to explain as far as the SLCHP is concerned, for a fail¬ure is a failure. Secondly, Dr. Ting should realise that as Housing Minister, he owes the 18 million Malaysians a full explanation for his abysmal failure in achieving the SLCHP targets of building 328,391 low-cost houses, even after the SLCHP had been extended a second time for three years from June 1989 to June 1992.
Dr. Ting Chew Peh has only one mission as Minister of Housing – to repeal Rent Control Act.
Anyone studying Dr. Ting’s tenure as Housing Minister will come to the conclusion that he appears
to have only one mission – not to launch massive low-cost housing programmes to provide affordable homes to the poor and low-income Malaysians, but to repeal the Rent Control Act.
Recently, Dr. Ting said that the National Council of Local Government had agreed in principle to repeal the Rent Control Act 1966 in stages.
Again, Dr. Ting has shown no understanding or compassion for the tenants of the 39,000 pre-war houses who would be thrown out into the streets when these premises are decontrolled.
Penang itself has 12,600 pre-war premises and over 150,000 people would be made homeless if the
Rent Control Act is repealed without providing for alternative housing accommodation for them. For the whole country, 400,000 to 500,000 people could be affected when all the 39,000 pre-war houses are taken into consideration.
In April last year, I told Dr. Ting Chew Peh that a massive re-housing programme for the tenants of the 39,000 pre-war houses must precede the decontrol of the premises.
As Dr. Ting Chew Peh has pushed through the National Coun¬cil of Local Government binding all State Governments to agree in principle to repeal the Rent Control Act, I call on him to publicly declare whether the Housing Ministry has a master-plan to re-house the 400,000 to 500,000 people who would be affected by the Rent Control Act and to give the details of this plan.