FIGHTING TO STAY IN BUSINESS: Hawkers protest at their stalls along Sungai Rejang Waterfront.
SARIKEI: An unfamiliar situation is unfolding here as hawkers whose stalls have been ordered to be demolished by the district council staged a protest blaming DAP for
their predicament and appealing to Barisan Nasional to intervene.
Owners of the 24 controversial stalls staged a protest at the site last Thursday afternoon demanding the authority not to demolish their stalls.
“Don’t chase us away. We need the stalls to earn decent income,” was the messages on their banner and posters.
Repok assemblyman Dr Wong Hua Seh who is from DAP had voiced out that the stalls constructed by the local council at Sungai Nyelong and Sungai Rejang Waterfront were illegal and should be demolished immediately.
Many local residents felt that the stalls spoiled the beauty of the town’s popular waterfronts and deprived them of a place to take a stroll, he explained.
He added that he was acting on public complaints when raised the matter during the first Legislative Assembly meeting last June and again during last month (November) sitting.
Assistant Minister of Local Government, Datuk John Sikie Tayai answered his query by saying that that action had been taken to remove the stalls.
“I was told by Sikie that his ministry was aware of issue and had ordered the Sarikei District Council (SDC) to take appropriate action,” Dr Wong told reporters at a press conference at DAP branch office here yesterday.
The assistant minister also informed him that the local council, through a letter dated October 27 this year had given the developer 30 days’ grace period to demolish the stalls and to notify the hawkers to cease operation, Wong said.
“Till today (December 2), not only had no action been taken by the council, but instead, the hawkers staged a protest appealing to the authority to withdraw its demolition order.” Wong said.
Taken aback by the hawkers’ anger towards him for raising the matter, Wong explained: “I am just playing my role to serve and speak up for the rakyat as their elected representative. In fact I share the grievance of the affected hawkers as much as I am concerned with the lives of all local residents.”
He put the blame on the local council for not consulting the other agencies in the District Development Committee in choosing suitable sites for putting up the stalls.
That was actual the reason behind the problem which the hawkers wrongly directed at him, Wong pointed out.
Stressing that he was concerned with the predicament of the affected hawkers, Wong advised them to demand compensation from the developer and the local council for whatever losses they had suffered.
While commending the council for its firmness in implementing the five-footway regulation,
he challenged it to exercise similar firmness of action on this case.