Phee Boon Poh, the State Executive Councillor for Welfare, Caring Society and Environment, said Friday the state secretary’s office did not receive any updates related to the management of the disaster from the federal Civil Defence Department (JPAM).
He pointed out that under Tier 2 (for state-level disaster) of the National Security Council’s Directive 20, the state secretary was the designated secretariat to oversee responses during a disaster.
“Up till today the state secretary’s office has not received any reports from JPAM,” Phee told a press conference in Komtar.
He stressed that all parties should work together when there was an emergency, such as the July floods that inundated parts of Teluk Bahang and Bayan Lepas.
Phee added that on July 19, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng directed all flood victims in transit centres to be given aid, but the state was unable to do so as the reports with lists of victims were held by the JPAM.
“It is our SOP (standard operating procedure) in the state government that aid be given within 24 hours,” he said.
“Therefore I even went to the extent of drawing my own cash and going down to the Bayan Lepas transit centre, but I did not even get the list of the victims,” he said.
“We could have given the money immediately. The cash was ready but the reports were not ready. Who had the reports? JPAM.”
He said JPAM gave a report to the federal village development and security committee (JKKKP) there instead of giving it to the Southwest District Office which is under the state.
“Why did you not show any respect to the state government by giving the reports to the district office and to the state secretary?” Phee asked.
“I appeal to them to please put aside politics in times of disaster for the people to benefit from the leadership.”
Phee said this in responding to Balik Pulau MP Dr Hilmi Yahaya who was quoted by Bernama on Thursday as saying that the state government had discriminated against flood victims, especially those in the BN-held Balik Pulau parliamentary constituency. The constituency includes Teluk Bahang and Bayan Lepas.
Hilmi, who is deputy health minister, said in the report that only 31 people were given state aid in the area.
Phee pointed out that the SOP on who was entitled to aid covered those who had been evacuated to gazetted transit centres. “Under the SOP you are only entitled if you stay at a transit centre more than 24 hours,” he said.
He explained that most of the 31 families in Teluk Bahang and Bayan Lepas remained at the centres for less than the stipulated 24 hours. “If you are going by the SOP then they are not qualified,” he said.
He said a final list of 25 families was, nevertheless, decided upon during a meeting eventually held between the district office and the JPAM. The state executive council had approved the list for financial aid to be given, he said.