SURAT TERBUKA KEPADA YB MENTERI BESAR SELANGOR

  I remember some 20 years ago, Dr Tan Seng Giaw used to tell me that it is not the Member of Parliament's responsibilty to peek into clogged drains and other public amenities.                Yet, without fail, the Kepong MP would faithfully come to the ground to see for himself the complaint, big or small. This was part of his weekly schedule of meeting the people on matters that affected them.  Local Government's Failure                While Dr Tan and I (MP and voter) agreed that looking at clogged drains should be the job of the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), we all know the reality on the ground -- the local government throughout the whole country has failed miserably.                  I can say that at the very least, Penang seems to havve gotten it right.  Well, at least on one aspect -- cleanliness of the island!                It is this failure of the local government that has brought misery to the people. While writing this piece, a friend from Australia sent me a vi

               I find it hard to believe that Selangor State exco for  tourism, environment, green technology and Orang Asli affairs, Hee Loy Sian could make such a statement that  " Bukit Lagong quarrying won't affect Orang Asli."               I quote: “These approvals were made taking into consideration not just the demand for stones in the effort to develop Selangor, but also sustainability, reducing environmental impact, controlling the production rate of stone materials, and reducing congestion on production road."                If I were not wrong, this   is the impact of only two operating quarries in the area, but now, under Amirudin and his predessor, 28 quarry mini-licenses have been issued.  What a great eco-tourism spot this is!              Not only did former  FRIM director-general Salleh Mohd Nor say that  " quarries that will come up in the Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve will undermine the Forest Research Institute’s (FRIM’s) efforts to apply for