HE made the headlines once more but again for the wrong reason.
A photograph has emerged on social media, showing Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Beluran Umno Division chief James Ratib dining at a restaurant with turtle eggs placed on the table in front of them.
The photo, believed to have been taken during a dinner at a local restaurant following the Umno Beluran Division meeting in August, went viral. It was first posted by “Deadturtles Sabah” on the Walai Penyu Resort Libaran Facebook page.
In an immediate response, Ismail Sabri defended himself, saying he did not eat the eggs and he brought out his medical problem pertaining to high cholesterol level to justify his innocence.
Realising the reason he offered was not convincing enough for him to wriggle out of the embarrassing situation, the Minister said he was merely a guest at the event and had not been involved in preparing the menu.
“As a guest, we are not involved in ordering food. If it was an a la cart event, I would have ordered my own food but in this event, it was pre-ordered. I didn’t do any ordering. It was there. You cannot blame me and say I ate it just because it was on the table,” he was reported as saying.
He also cited the example of a Hindu going to a Malay-Muslim gathering where, he said, beef rending or beef curry would most likely be served.
“You cannot blame them and say the Hindus at the gathering had beef. Or else all Hindus in Malaysia would have consumed beef against their religion. It is about the choice we make,” he added.
Any right-thinking citizen would say the wakil rakyat is way far from speaking with wisdom by comparing an illegal act with an insensible host serving food that some of the guests are not supposed to eat for religious reason.
In this instance, a lawmaker had witnessed an offence but did not enforce the law to prevent the offence – that is all that matters in the eyes of the people.
Another disappointment is the minister’s claim that he had no knowledge of the prohibition on consuming turtle eggs, reflecting his ignorance of environmental and wildlife conservation as well as protection of endangered species.
It’s true only Sarawak and Sabah have legislation that totally protects marine turtles under the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997 (Sabah) and the Wildlife Protection Ordinance 1998 (Sarawak). But should not a federal minister, holding such an important portfolio, be aware of such law? Pleading ignorance or innocence is clearly unacceptable, considering it’s common knowledge consumption of turtle eggs is prohibited in the country.
Now, what do we actually see from all buck-passing and claims of ignorance and innocence? Needless to say, it’s the propensity on the part of most of our politicians – from across the political divide, one might add – to indulge in self-exoneration. Their readiness to switch to denial mode is just a cop out.
Incidentally, I read the news about a man named Lewis Jackson in Brunswich, Georgia, USA, who was sentenced to 21 months in prison after his second conviction for stealing sea turtle eggs from a beach on coastal Sapelo.
The 61-year-old was already on probation for looting Loggerhead turtle nests and trying to remove 150 turtle eggs from the Island in 2012. He was arrested with a cooler full of turtle eggs.
In Georgia, the loggerhead sea turtle is listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. Loggerhead eggs can fetch as much as US$25 per egg on the black market.
“I made a bad mistake,” Jackson said at his sentencing by US District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood.
“I just ask the court to have mercy. That is all I can say.”
But the learned judge told Jackson he had “squandered” his chance for leniency, and sentenced him to a week in prison for each sea turtle he made off with.
It really takes a responsible government to enforce the law without fear or favour. But with lawmakers giving all sorts of excuses to get off the hook in a sticky situation, it’s no wonder the citizens are taking it as the cue to challenge the law!
In Kuching, a business operating at the expense of peace and security at the residential area of Stutong Indah is one such case.
The controversy, dubbed the “Silo Saga” by the media, has been dragging on for almost three years with one brave resident known as Chong KK holding at least three press conferences in the past 18 months to voice his fears over the threat businesses operating into the wee hours at the housing area pose to the well-being of its residents.
Chong also said the business premises created a junction, causing a blind spot and depriving motorists of a clear view of oncoming vehicles.
Even with the authorities (in the case the Land and Survey department) serving notices asking them to make right the breaches they have committed after the issue was highlighted by the media, one of the operators still had the audacity to call a press conference, claiming operating a business in residential areas was not new, and he was not the only one doing it.
Unkind remarks were passed doubting Chong’s mental condition by the operators – it is undeniably tempting for any press to sensationalise it, but I remember a friend told me Chong is an exceptionally simple guy with a big heart.
When news of the Sila Saga broke with solutions as reported forthcoming, an elderly gentleman rang the press and asked the press to do them “a social service” too.
“Our house is sandwiched between a funeral parlour and a food court. During the day, the food court is a place for servicing and repairing vehicles but at night, it operates into the wee hours as a full-fledged food court with different stalls,” he lamented.
For the record, it was not the first time that this elder called the press. It was probably more than a year ago that he called and his plight had been duly brought to the attention of Kuching South City Council.
It takes courage to stand for our rights when the laws are not being strictly enforced.
Until reforms are introduced, and more importantly, implemented at all levels of government – from the ministers at the top right down to the enforcement agencies, councils and authorities – what appear more than likely to persist are cases such as the Silo Saga and the elderly couple who are being driven out of their wits by the water jet noises, disruptive din of clashing utensils, clunking spatulas and sizzling woks – day and night.
How sad.