Lepaih 6 tahun ada lagi Melayu dok meroyan dengan Guan Eng...

Selepas 6 tahun, kumpulan Melayu hanya ‘serang’ negeri Pakatan Pulau Pinang...

Tidak berlaku di negeri Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lain kecuali Pulau Pinang, selepas 6 tahun tsunami politik 2008, kumpulan Melayu masih lagi mengadakan protes terhadap kerajaan negeri berhubung kebajikan mereka.

Tanpa menyatakan DAP dan sekutunya hanya memerintah Pulau Pinang sejak 2008, protes “ganas” diteruskan menentang Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang Lim Guan Eng, serangan terhadap demonstrasi aman dan pada sidang Dewan Undangan Negeri (DUN) tahun ini atas nama hak dan kebajikan Melayu.

Terdapat syak wasangka berhubung siapa menaja atau menyusun kumpulan ini tetapi seorang daripada pemimpinnya berkata mereka bersatu kerana kebimbangan terhadap isu tempatan yang menjejaskan kebajikan dan kehidupan mereka.

Kebanyakan individu terlibat dengan badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) berkenaan bukanlah orang baru, sesetengahnya mempunyai reputasi buruk sebagai pengacau menganjurkan demonstrasi ganas dan menakut-nakutkan kumpulan yang berbeza garis perjuangan. Tetapi bukan semuanya politik kata Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin, presiden kepada Gabungan Perwakilan Melayu Pulau Pinang (G-PEM), salah satu daripada gabungan baru yang muncul tahun ini.

“Kami mempertimbangkan, berkongsi idea, mengumpulkan maklumat. Kami melihat isu kebajikan seperti peniaga Melayu kehilangan gerai mereka. Kami merekodkan 20 kes seperti ini di Pulau Pinang dan kami mengetengahkan masalah mereka kerana mereka tidak ditawarkan pampasan.

“Kami juga mahu mengetangahkan isu seperti perumahan mampu milik dan orang Melayu tempatan kehilangan kampung mereka kerana pembangunan baru.

“Isu lain yang sedang kami kaji adalah cadangan penjualan tanah Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) di tanah besar,” katanya kepada The Malaysian Insider merujuk kepada rancangan Putrajaya untuk membangunkan tanah tersebut.

Selain G-PEM, terdapat gabungan baru seperti Gabungan Persatuan Melayu Islam Pulau Pinang (GPMIPP) yang ditubuhkan tahun ini. GMIPP kini terkenal kerana menyerang demonstrasi aman aktivis hak asasi manusia menentang Akta Hasutan di Dataran Pidato di George Town Ahad lepas. G-PEM, gabungan lebih kecil yang menghimpunkan 14 kumpulan, merupakan anggota kepada GPMIPP, kata Rizuad.

Beliau berkata, mereka tidak berniat menimbulkan kekacauan tetapi mahu menjadi lebih tersusun dan mempunyai suara lebih kuat dalam menyuarakan isu Melayu kepada kerajaan negeri.

“Kami mahu mempunyai suara kolektif dan berfungsi dengan koordinasi lebih baik supaya kita boleh membangkitkan isu dan memulakan tindakan.

“Kami mahu melakukan ini secara profesional dan menggunakan saluran betul untuk mendapatkan hasil,” katanya.

G-PEM ditubuhkan pada April tahun ini dan di antara 14 NGO Melayu tempatan yang bersama mereka adalah Persatuan Mukabuku Pulau Pinang, Persatuan Penarik Beca, Persatuan Wira Bersatu Pulau Pinang, Persatuan Ibu Tunggal Barat Daya dan Permatang Pauh dan Persatuan Nur Kasih Pulau Pinang. GPMIPP yang lebih besar menggabungkan 51 kumpulan termasuk G-PEM dan kumpulan yang menyertai G-PEM.

Rizuad berkata, GMIPP masih belum berdaftar tetapi pendaftaran G-PEM dengan Pendaftar Pertubuhan (RoS) diluluskan bulan lepas. Rizuad berkata, kebanyakan ahli terdiri daripada kelas pekerja dan menengah, tetapi terdapat sebilangan kecil golongan profesional yang menasihatkan gabungan tersebut dalam isu perundangan dan perkara lain. Beliau mengakui sebilangan besar ahli 14 NGO bersama G-PEM merupakan ahli parti politik seperti Umno, PKR dan PAS.

“Ahli kami Persatuan Anak Jati Melayu Pulau Pinang (Pajim) kebanyakannya merupakan ahli PAS,” kata Rizuad yang juga merupakan ahli Umno dan Perkasa.

Beliau berkata, dirinya dan pengerusi NGO lain dalam G-PEM bertemu sekurang-kurangnya seminggu sekali mengenai isu yang menjejaskan komuniti Melayu.

Ketua menteri harus berbincang dengan komuniti Melayu

Rizuad berkata, G-PEM sentiasa bersedia untuk berjumpa dengan ahli majlis mesyuarat kerajaan negeri (exco) termasuk ketua menteri.

“Kami pernah berbincang dengan Exco Agama Datuk Abdul Malik Abul Kassim sebelum ini. Saya pernah meminta untuk bertemu dengan ketua menteri untuk berbincang mengenai isu Melayu.

“Sudah sekian lama dan saya masih menunggu temu janji untuk berjumpa Lim. Beliau harus berbincang dengan NGO Melayu dan melihat isu yang dibangkitkan untuk komuniti tersebut.

“Saya tidak akan membawa 100 orang untuk perjumpaan tersebut. Saya hanya akan membawa ahli jawatankuasa. Saya tidak akan pukul orang,” katanya.

Walaupun mempunyai hubungan dengan Umno dan parti politik lain, Rizuad yang juga ketua Pemuda Perkasa Pulau Pinang berkata, G-PEM tidak didanai organisasi ini.

“Kami tidak mahu wang mereka. Kami mahu kekal bebas jadi apabila kami rasakan kerajaan pusat atau kerajaan Pakatan Rakyat membuat sesuatu yang tidak betul, kami boleh bersuara dan mengkritik,” katanya.

Belia berkata, G-PEM mendapatkan dana daripada ahlinya dan aktiviti mencari dana.

“Kami hanya memerlukan sedikit wang untuk mencetak kenyataan, melakukan fotokopi dan untuk makanan dan minuman jika kami ada mesyuarat atau program di kalangan ahli. Ia tidak memerlukan kos tinggi.

“Kami juga mempunyai peraturan untuk tidak membayar orang untuk menyertai demonstrasi,” katanya.

Sukar mengawal emosi

G-PEM dan sesetengah NGO di bawahnya terlibat dengan beberapa demonstrasi di Pulau Pinang dan yang terbaru apabila mereka menggempur perhimpunan menentang Akta Hasutan di Dataran Pidato, George Town Ahad lepas. Acara tersebut terpaksa dihentikan selepas kekacauan berlaku. 

Rizuad berkata, beliau tidak hadir ke perhimpunan yang dianjurkan Gerakan Hapus Akta Hasutan (GHAH) tetapi mengakui G-PEM terlibat menggangu acara tersebut kerana NGO di bawahnya menghantar wakil.

“Saya tidak boleh mengawal ahli. Secara peribadinya saya lebih suka kalau mereka berdebat baik-baik mengenai isu Akta Hasutan di Dataran Pidato.

“GHAH menganjurkan protes seperti itu untuk menghasut orang ramai,” katanya.

Rizuad berkata, ahlinya memberitahu selepas insiden itu keadaan menjadi tegang apabila ada ahli NGO Melayu mengamuk dengan kehadiran orang asing di acara itu.

“Saya tidak fikir ianya betul untuk orang asing terlibat. Itu merupakan campur tangan luar kepada hal ehwal Malaysia,” katanya merujuk kepada laporan berita dua tahun lalu anggota GHAH Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) menerima dana asing.

“Kebebasan bersuara seharusnya dilakukan dengan ikhlas. Mereka tidak patut membawa orang asing.

“Saya juga mahu polis dan pihak berkuasa berkaitan bertanggungjawab kerana tidak bertindak terhadap campur tangan asing dalam negara kita. Pihak berkuasa patut mencegahnya,” katanya.

Rizuad pada mulanya enggan mengulas tindakan ganas anggota G-PEM tetapi apabila ditanya sekali lagi beliau mengakui sukar untuk mengawal apabila keadaan emosi tegang.

“Saya juga agresif tetapi cuba melakukan dengan cara berbeza sekarang. Saya diberitahu cara saya terlalu agresif. Tetapi berhubung isu kaum dan agama, saya akan berjuang habis-habisan,” katanya.

Tidak pernah sunyi dengan kontroversi, Rizuad dikatakan di antara mereka yang menceroboh DUN Pulau Pinang semasa protes terhadap Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (Adun) Seri Delima RSN Rayer kerana mengatakan “celaka Umno” pada 21 Mei tahun ini.

Beliau adalah di antara 15 lelaki, yang didakwa kerana menceroboh mengikut Seksyen 448, Kanun Keseksaan berhubung insiden itu pada 19 Jun. – tmi

6 years on, Malay groups only carp at Pakatan-ruled Penang...

It does not happen in other Pakatan Rakyat-ruled (PR) states, except Penang, where six years after the 2008 political tsunami, Malay groups are still holding protests against the state government ostensibly over the community's welfare.

No mention is made that DAP and its partners have only ruled Penang since 2008 as rowdy protests continue against Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and mobs disrupt peaceful demonstrations and even stormed the state legislative assembly earlier this year in the name of Malay welfare and rights.

There is suspicion over who has funded or organised these groups but one leader insists they have banded together over concerns about local issues affecting their welfare and livelihoods.

Many of the individual NGOs are not new and in recent years, some have earned a bad reputation as troublemakers, who organised demonstrations and intimidate others whose causes they do not support. But not everything was politics, said Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin, the president of Gabungan Perwakilan Melayu Pulau Pinang (G-PEM), one of the new coalitions that have emerged this year.

"We deliberate, share ideas, collect information... We look into welfare issues like local Malay traders losing their stalls. We have recorded more than 20 cases like that in Penang and we want to highlight their plight because they were not offered compensation.

"We also want to highlight issues of affordable housing and of local Malays losing their kampung to new developments.

"Another issue we are studying is the proposed sale of the Royal Malaysian Air Force land on the mainland," he told The Malaysian Insider, referring to Putrajaya's plans to redevelop the airbase.

Besides G-PEM, another new coalition is the Gabungan Persatuan Melayu Islam Pulau Pinang (GPMIPP), which was formed this year.

GPMIPP is infamous now for breaking up a peaceful demonstration by human rights activists against the Sedition Act at the Speaker's Square in George Town last Sunday. G-PEM, a smaller coalition of 14 groups, is a member of GPMIPP, Rizuad said. They were not out to raise trouble but just want to be more organised and have a stronger voice in raising Malay issues with the state authorities, he said.

"We want to have a collective voice and to function with better coordination so we can act on issues and push for action.

"We want to do this as professionally as we can, going through the right channels to get results," he said

G-PEM was formed in April this year, and among its 14 local Malay NGOs are Persatuan Mukabuku Pulau Pinang, Persatuan Penarik Beca, Persatuan Wira Bersatu Pulau Pinang, Persatuan Ibu Tunggal Barat Daya and Permatang Pauh and Persatuan Nur Kasih Pulau Pinang.

The larger GPMIPP has 51 member groups, including G-PEM and some of G-PEM's component members as well. While GPMIPP is not registered, Rizuad said G-PEM's registration with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) was approved last month. Its members are mainly from the working and middle class, with a small number of professionals who advise the coalition on legal matters and other issues.

He admitted that a quarter of the members among G-PEM's 14 NGOs were also members of political parties Umno, PKR and PAS.

"Our member Persatuan Anak Jati Melayu Pulau Pinang (Pajim) is mostly made up of PAS members," said Rizuad, who is both an Umno and Perkasa member.

He said he and the chairmen of the other NGOs in G-PEM met at least once a week to discuss issues affecting their communities.

Chief minister must engage Malay community

Rizuad said G-PEM was always ready to meet with the state excos, including Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng himself.

"We have sat down with the state religious exco Datuk Abdul Malik Abul Kassim before. I have also asked for an appointment to see the chief minister to discuss Malay issues.

"It has been some time and I am still waiting for the appointment to see Lim. He has to engage local Malay NGOs and look into the issues they are raising on behalf of the community.

"I won't bring 100 people into the meeting. I will just bring my committee members. I don't beat up people," he said.

Despite having ties with Umno and other political parties, Rizuad, who was also Penang Perkasa Youth chief, said G-PEM was not funded by these organisations.

"We don't want their money. We want to stay neutral so whenever we think that the federal government or the Pakatan Rakyat government is not doing something right, we can speak out and criticise.”

G-PEM sourced its funds from members through fund-raisers, he added.

"We only need a little money to print out statements, make photocopies and for food and drinks if we have meetings or programmes among our members. That does not cost much.

"We also have a rule against paying people to participate in demonstrations.”

Hard to control emotions

G-PEM and some of its member NGOs had been linked to several demonstrations in Penang, and the latest was an anti-sedition rally they disrupted at Speaker's Square in George Town on Sunday. The event was called off following the disruption.

Rizuad, who said he was not at the rally organised by Gerakan Hapus Akta Hasutan (GHAH), admitted that G-PEM was involved in the ruckus because its members had representatives present.

"I do not have control over all my members. Personally, I would have preferred they all debated about the Sedition Act issue at the Speaker's Square properly.

"GHAH organising a protest like that was also a way of inciting people.”

Rizuad said his members told him after the incident that things became tense at the square when Malay NGO members got angry with the presence of some foreigners at the event.

"I don't think it is right that foreigners were involved. That is foreign interference into Malaysian affairs," he said, referring to news reports two years ago that GHAH member Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) received foreign funds.

"Freedom of speech must also be observed sincerely. They should not have brought in foreigners.

"I also take the police and relevant authorities to task for not acting on foreigners who try to meddle with our affairs. The authorities should have prevented it.”

Rizuad at first would not comment on the disruptive behaviour of G-PEM members, but when asked again, he said that maintaining control was difficult when emotions were high.

"I was aggressive, too, but I am trying to do things differently now. I had been told off that my style was too aggressive. But when it comes to issues of race and religion, I will fight to the end."

No stranger to controversy, Rizuad was allegedly one of those who had trespassed into the state legislative assembly building during a protest against Seri Delima assemblyman R.S.N. Rayer for remarking "celaka celaka Umno" (Umno be damned) on May 21 this year.

He was among 15 men charged with trespassing under over the incident on June 19. – tmi

Gilaking - Was Gerakan that good 50 years in Penang and Penang malays were enjoying all the benefit.This is UMNO oriented demostration in the state.Sorry UMNO and BN you will never win back PENANG 

amoker27 145p - if Najib wants to take over the military airbase like what he did to Selangor, why you demonstrate against Penang? Its putrajaya la.

When lawyers march, something rotten happened in our country...

cheers.