Saturday, 29 June 2013 09:40
'MCA go home' vs 'Where was DAP 13 years ago?' at Jonker Walk
As evening approached, Jonker Street in Malacca appeared visibly empty except for the occasional passing car and other vehicles parked over the faded stall lots on both side of the road.
The fate of the popular Jonker Walk night market there appeared uncertain as the state government had ordered the road to be opened to traffic, making it impossible for traders to conduct their business.
By 5pm, at the far end of the street, a small group of DAP state representatives, clad in black ‘Save Jonker Walk’ T-shirts had assembled and were preparing to cordon off the road in defiance of a state government directive.
However, a group of over 100 MCA supporters a stone’s throw away beat DAP to it as they moved to close off one end of road, chanting “Cordon off Jonker Street” and holding up banners such as ‘Traffic jam is a joke’ - mocking the state government’s justification of its directive.
(Now isn't this just quaint, DAP la , MCA la .. bloody hell, it is like a free for all melee to score feel good points among the chinese community)
(Now isn't this just quaint, DAP la , MCA la .. bloody hell, it is like a free for all melee to score feel good points among the chinese community)
Malacca MCA chief Gan Tian Loo, who is also the Jonker Walk committe deputy chairperson, was among the crowd.
“The traders are asking for the road to be closed as before and we are here to hear their wishes and bring their voice to the state government,” he said as sound of honks in support filled the background.
However, Gan (right) took a guarded approach, denying that he was leading the protest, adding that he was merely there to “survey” the site after receiving several requests from the traders.
(see la, still worried about what his political BN masters will think , so it is like hands on covering his craphole as he walkabout surveying , even Nazri has more guts , speaking out against the closure)
As traders begin to push their carts pass the protest to set up their stalls on Jonker street, the protesters applauded them like heroes. ( score 1 point for MCA)
However, after just 15 minutes, the spotlight shifted to DAP as the party’s supremo Lim Kit Siang made a surprise visit, flanked by the party’s top leaders including Seremban MP Anthony Loke and Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua, as well as representatives from north Johor and Negri Sembilan.
( surprise visit? I doubt that,They probably heard MCA is planning this protest and ain't no way, they will let MCA outmanuever them in scoring some political mileage from Malaccans.so sneaky this PR guys, just appeared out of nowhere, timing was perfection , stealing the thunder from MCA .. Nice play PR , salute!)
(another thought , how the heck did the DAP big guns get there so fast and in numbers ? think it may have been a call for reinforcements.." tiu sui " as cantonese say.." from the small group of DAP state reps already there,still LKS Tony Pua,Anthony Loke, there in 15 mins, whoa..planned ? Hmmmmm ! )
( WOW , LKS and 2 other big guns, that is worth 3 points man..so MCA 1--DAP 3 )
( surprise visit? I doubt that,They probably heard MCA is planning this protest and ain't no way, they will let MCA outmanuever them in scoring some political mileage from Malaccans.so sneaky this PR guys, just appeared out of nowhere, timing was perfection , stealing the thunder from MCA .. Nice play PR , salute!)
(another thought , how the heck did the DAP big guns get there so fast and in numbers ? think it may have been a call for reinforcements.." tiu sui " as cantonese say.." from the small group of DAP state reps already there,still LKS Tony Pua,Anthony Loke, there in 15 mins, whoa..planned ? Hmmmmm ! )
( WOW , LKS and 2 other big guns, that is worth 3 points man..so MCA 1--DAP 3 )
Visible animosity
Despite the common cause, some MCA and DAP members threw insults at each other with shouts of “MCA go home” and “Where was DAP 13 years ago?” ( play fair la,both sides, why kick each other in d balls, just once lah, put differences and political rivalry aside, n come together and champion the common cause close to the people's sentiments,)
DAP had opposed the setting-up of Jonker Walk 13 years ago, citing poor initial planning but is now in favour of preserving the tourist destination.
( what do u expect ! hardly shocking at all, this is politics after all, anything for mileage and feel good factor that can be translated into votes later)
( what do u expect ! hardly shocking at all, this is politics after all, anything for mileage and feel good factor that can be translated into votes later)
Pakatan’s high-powered delegation, including Malacca PKR chief Shamsul Iskandar Akin and Malacca PAS commissioner Adly Zahari, proceeded past the MCA protesters for a ceramah from behind a four-wheel-drive vehicle as the enthusiastic crowd quickly swelled to close to 500. ( PKR and even PAS in the fray, MCA trailing now , aiyah , where is UMNO n MIC when U need them ! MCA has to be the Lone Ranger on this one )
“Previously the state government wanted to level Bukit Cina but the people of Malacca were successful in defending it, likewise we will prevail with Jonker Walk,” declared Lim.
Bukit Cina is Malacca’s largest Chinese cemetery situated in the heart of state.
He further accused the BN government of embarking on “national retaliation” over the last general election results rather than “national reconciliation”.
Later, PKR’s Shamsul, who thwarted former Malacca chief minister Ali Rustam’s ambition for federal politics by defeating him in Bukit Katil, said his constituency had similarly faced retaliation from the state government.
“We have a Chempaka Ramadhan market where the tender had been issued and permits issued but they were suddenly frozen because it is in Bukit Katil and BN lost there.
“The Chempaka Ramadhan market is mostly run by Malays while Jonker Walk is mostly Chinese, and the state government is taking revenge regardless of race,” he said.
( seriously has a point on the retaliation bit, there seems to be a worrying pattern being exhibited))
( seriously has a point on the retaliation bit, there seems to be a worrying pattern being exhibited))
‘Motion against CM’
Meanwhile, Malacca DAP chief Goh Leong San said his party will move an emergency motion in the state assembly on Monday to remove Malacca Chief Minister Idris Haron for the decision.
Kota Melaka MP Sim Tong Him questioned the ‘Malaccan-ness’ of Idris for wanting to remove an important attraction in the state.
He also praised MCA for also protesting against the state government decision, but created an awkward moment when he repeatedly invited Malacca MCA chief Gan on stage.
Gan, who had earlier criticised the DAP for turning Jonker Street into a political ceramah, was nowhere to be seen.
( what ? and MCA is an NGO??? Ass and Donkey.. same animal ! MCA = Ass, Dap can be donkey, coz Ass can also mean the smelly part of the human anatomy where the rectum is..! )
Unable to locate Gan, the hour-long ceramah was ended as Pakatan’s leaders went around to greet traders who were able to go about their business, thanks to the cordon by MCA and DAP.( or of course hiding la, totally outnumbered and outgunned by PR , poor MCA , want to champion a chinese cause but got beat to it and hijacked by PR)
Despite the animosity, Malacca MCA Wanita Chief Kian Sit Har, who was present and had previously broken ranks to openly support electoral reform group Bersih, viewed the double protest by her party and DAP positively.
“It is good, the more people there is, the more strength we have.
“I hope the chief minister will heed the people’s urging,” she said.
( macam ini la MCA, this MDM probably has bigger balls (no disrespect but admiration ) than the GAN dude, this is how MCA can endear themselves back into the community's psyche.! CSL , U " Hum Sup Lo" U ! "that;s horny or lecherous old man" in cantonese ,--- stop viewing porn and participate in the porn productions by UMNO 's octo X ( thats 8 times X ) rated production house - and learn from this sweetheart of a Lady)
Personally , I think DAP scored more than MCA in this round..
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
...............................................................................................................................................................
Well guess the good thing out of this fracas is that , people are no longer going to take things sitting down , especially when it is bread and butter issues and perceived bullying by Gomen ..
And whether it was political retaliation or traffic congestion problem , you draw your own conclusions but read the last news article below "Tony Pua's jumps into Jonker walk issue...1st ".
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
'Act like a leader and not a petty, cowardly politician' - Tony tells new Malacca MB
Yesterday evening, I had joined Members of Parliament for Gelang Patah, Seremban, Rasah, Bakri and of course, Kota Melaka and Bukit Katil to visit and protest the UMNO’s political vengeance against Malaccans by opening Jonker Walk to motor traffic.
The visit and protest has attracted hundreds who unanimously demanded that the Melaka state government withdraw the order to the Melaka City Council to open Jonker Walk which has become a celebrated tourist landmark in Malaysia, famed for its weekend night market.
The protests expressed over the past week by various parties have resulted in the Melaka Chief Minister backtracking and twisting the rationale and decisions to open up Jonker Walk.
Fulfilling the people's wishes
While initially Datuk Idris Haron had told Kwong Wah Daily that the move was to “fulfil the people’s wishes” in reaction to MCA candidates being defeated by DAP, now he claims that the move has nothing to do with political retaliation, and everything to do with easing traffic congestion in Melaka City.
Thursday, 27 June 2013 19:30
Now Malacca says 'we never wanted to close Jonker Walk night market'
MALACCA - The state government never had any intention to close down the Jonker Walk night market, said state Housing, Local Government and Environment exco Datuk Ismail Othman.
"There was never any decision to shut down the night market. The whole issue was blown out of proportion due to misunderstanding over our decision to open Jalan Hang Jebat, also known as Jonker Street, to traffic over the weekends.
"Closing down the night market and opening up the road to traffic over the weekends are two completely different issues," he told reporters at Seri Negeri here today.
Ismail said the licensed traders could continue to run their businesses as usual over the weekends.
"However, as the road would now be open to traffic, the traders would need to shift their stalls to the sidewalk and the side alleys.
"We made the decision to open up the road due to numerous complaints of terrible traffic congestion over weekends and public holidays," he said.
Ismail said the public and tourists alike complained of having to wait up to four hours just to reach the Malacca city centre from the Ayer Keroh toll, a journey which normally take about 30 minutes.
"We hope the decision to open up the road will help ease traffic congestion, especially in the city centre.
"There was never any intention to restrict the traders from doing business, so we hope the issue has been cleared up," he said.
Also present at the press conference was state Tourism, Coastal, River and Island Committee deputy chairman Datuk Ghazale Mohammad.
Ghazale said the traders were expected to continue complying with the rules stipulated under their licence, such as clearing up after themselves once the night market closed for the day.
He added that traffic police would be stationed there to monitor the traffic flow.
Previously, the street is closed to traffic every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 6pm to make way for the night market which has been in operation since 2000.
There was a huge public outcry over the decision to reopen the road to traffic on weekends starting tomorrow.
NST
Tony Pua jumps into Jonker Walk issue, saying there’s a cover-up
BY ELIZABETH ZACHARIAH
Tony Pua has accused Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz of "covering up" the Malacca state government's closure of Jonker Street.
The PJ Utara MP said that while Nazri had seemingly "appealed" to Malacca Chief Minister Datuk Idris Haron not to close down the popular tourist spot, he had also reached a "compromise' with Idris.
"Nazri claimed that the CM had ordered Jonker Street to be closed for four weeks to study the traffic flow.
"This is a compromise and it is unacceptable," Pua said.
He said that this was because idris himself had admitted the move was an act of retaliation against the non-Malay community in Malacca.
"I have with me a copy of the memo issued by the mayor of Malacca city council which instructed the full closure of the market, wih no mention of the so-called traffic study."
Idris had earlier said that the decision to reopen the roads was made after the state government received complaints of traffic congestion every weekend.
Some users had complained that it took four hours to reach Malacca city from the Ayer Keroh toll plaza.
Idris was also quoted by Utusan Malaysia as saying the state executive council did not order Jonker Walk, the popular weekend night market, to be closed but to open the roads previously closed to make way for it.
"My previous statement has been misinterpreted. The state executive council has never ordered the businesses along the road at Jonker Walk to be closed down.
“I just ordered the roads previously closed every Saturday and Sunday to be reopened to traffic to avoid congestion into the city," he told Utusan Malaysia yesterday.
However, according to a letter sent to the Jonker Walk committee last Thursday, it clearly stated that hawkers are not allowed to set up stalls on the roads or have equipment in the area. - June 26, 2013.
