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Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) Datuk Bandar Hamid Yusof has come out to defend his tough action over illegal hawkers declaring “I am just doing my duty”. He said this in response to critical comments hauled at the City Hall for clearing the city of illegal hawkers. He offers no apology for taking such a tough stance.
“DBKU is not brash in its action but merely complying with the rules and regulations.”
He added that the Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud had shown concern about illegal trading, and had urged city councils to be vigilant against illegal hawkers.
“The Chief Minister has made it clear that the councils should be prepared to be unpopular in order to ensure the city is clean, comfortable and safe for its residents.”
While the action by Datuk Bandar is taken in accordance with the rule and regulations, the authorities had forgotten the objectives set for issuing such licences.
In the first place, the objective of introducing Licensing was to ensure that the people who wanted to trade in order to earn a honest living can be regulated through the proper management and control by the state authorities, and at the same time, the state can collect some revenues to fund the cost of management.
The main problem why hawkers are not having the appropriate licences is probably due to the fact that the System had been onerous and had made it difficult for those less-educated poor people to get them unless they pay a kind of friendly services via well-connected middlemen.
Following rules and procedures is all about DOING THINGS RIGHT. The authorities can DO THE RIGHT THINGS.
If there are illegal hawkers, the Datuk Bandar should play their part in assisting these people by helping them in their application and speeding up the approval process. You don't have to crush them and destroy their only livelihood income.
Recents events surrounding the issue of trading licences have delivered a rude jolt to the public.
The more visible of these shocks is the conflict between traders who have been allocated lots at bustling Jalan Masjid India and those who have obtained the written permission of Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad to set up stalls in the city.
However, another aspect of the licensing exercise bears further scrutiny and this is where a sensational development has caught the headlines. This is the reported arrest of the son of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) by the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) for allegedly accepting a bribe to secure trading licence.
The Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) has detained the IGP's son over the alleged sale of hawker lots for Ramadan in the city of Kuala Lumpur.
Also arrested was a 25-year-old City Hall (DBKL) officer. Sources said both men had allegedly obtained several Ramadan bazaar lots set up by DBKL in Jalan Masjid India for the festive season at a minimal price. However, they allegedly demanded – and obtained – exorbitant prices for reselling the lots. It is learnt that the ACA has seized about RM11,000, believed to be proceeds from the sale of the lots from the IGP's son.
While public attention is focused on the alleged suspect’s family connections and the amount that it said to have changed hands, the more important issue is the perception that licences can be made available through the intervention of influential people.
In the light of these incidents, it is imperative for local councils to revamp their licensing procedures so that such permits are awarded in the full light of public scrutiny.
If the issuing of licencing had been made easier, and awarded to those who merited them, then, these middlemen would not had survived. The fact remains that the system is design to ensure that such malpractices would exist to benefit those with the right influence and well-connected.
Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) Datuk Bandar Hamid Yusof has come out to defend his tough action over illegal hawkers declaring “I am just doing my duty”. He said this in response to critical comments hauled at the City Hall for clearing the city of illegal hawkers. He offers no apology for taking such a tough stance.
“DBKU is not brash in its action but merely complying with the rules and regulations.”
He added that the Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud had shown concern about illegal trading, and had urged city councils to be vigilant against illegal hawkers.
“The Chief Minister has made it clear that the councils should be prepared to be unpopular in order to ensure the city is clean, comfortable and safe for its residents.”
While the action by Datuk Bandar is taken in accordance with the rule and regulations, the authorities had forgotten the objectives set for issuing such licences.
In the first place, the objective of introducing Licensing was to ensure that the people who wanted to trade in order to earn a honest living can be regulated through the proper management and control by the state authorities, and at the same time, the state can collect some revenues to fund the cost of management.
The main problem why hawkers are not having the appropriate licences is probably due to the fact that the System had been onerous and had made it difficult for those less-educated poor people to get them unless they pay a kind of friendly services via well-connected middlemen.
Following rules and procedures is all about DOING THINGS RIGHT. The authorities can DO THE RIGHT THINGS.
If there are illegal hawkers, the Datuk Bandar should play their part in assisting these people by helping them in their application and speeding up the approval process. You don't have to crush them and destroy their only livelihood income.
Recents events surrounding the issue of trading licences have delivered a rude jolt to the public.
The more visible of these shocks is the conflict between traders who have been allocated lots at bustling Jalan Masjid India and those who have obtained the written permission of Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad to set up stalls in the city.
However, another aspect of the licensing exercise bears further scrutiny and this is where a sensational development has caught the headlines. This is the reported arrest of the son of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) by the Anti Corruption Agency (ACA) for allegedly accepting a bribe to secure trading licence.
The Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) has detained the IGP's son over the alleged sale of hawker lots for Ramadan in the city of Kuala Lumpur.
Also arrested was a 25-year-old City Hall (DBKL) officer. Sources said both men had allegedly obtained several Ramadan bazaar lots set up by DBKL in Jalan Masjid India for the festive season at a minimal price. However, they allegedly demanded – and obtained – exorbitant prices for reselling the lots. It is learnt that the ACA has seized about RM11,000, believed to be proceeds from the sale of the lots from the IGP's son.
While public attention is focused on the alleged suspect’s family connections and the amount that it said to have changed hands, the more important issue is the perception that licences can be made available through the intervention of influential people.
In the light of these incidents, it is imperative for local councils to revamp their licensing procedures so that such permits are awarded in the full light of public scrutiny.
If the issuing of licencing had been made easier, and awarded to those who merited them, then, these middlemen would not had survived. The fact remains that the system is design to ensure that such malpractices would exist to benefit those with the right influence and well-connected.
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