Bad Apples

Datuk Noh Omar achieved international notoriety and placed Malaysia on the world map for public ridicule in November 2005 when he lambasted unhappy foreigners who were unhappy with the treatment they received in Malaysia triggered by the nude-squat incident. “If the foreigners think we are cruel, ask them to go back to their own country...” he said. He was then the Deputy Internal Security Minister.

After being chided by the Prime Minister, he argued that his remark was misinterpreted by the media and provided instead a qualified apology, “I openly apologise if the meaning of my comments was received negatively.” This was despite the fact that his remark was clearly recorded and shown on television.

However, instead of getting dropped as a deputy minister in the February 2006 cabinet reshuffle, he was rotated to be a Deputy Minister of Education. Very quickly, in September that year, he was at the centre of controversy once again, when he admitted in Parliament that there was no allocation at all for building new Chinese or Tamil schools in the 9th Malaysia Plan, despite the Ministry being accorded a record RM33.4 billion budget.

On Thursday last week, Noh Omar once again displayed his true colours in full view of the media and the public. When Selangor DAP chairman, Ean Yong Hian Wah submitted a fairly innocuous memorandum to the Deputy Minister with regards to violent conduct by a teacher in a secondary school on behalf of the abused student's parents, Noh Omar appeared to lose control of his faculties.

He verbally abused Ean Yong, crumpled the official memorandum and threw it away, before it was picked up by his officer. He accused Ean Yong and the DAP of interfering in a school disciplinary matter. Noh Omar even exclaimed at one stage that he will not handle any case referred via the party.

However, isn't it the responsibility of any political party, not just the opposition, to highlight the plight of the people, in this case a school which refused to take action against an abusive teacher to the relevant government officials? By refusing to accept the memorandum, Noh Omar has demonstrated his arrogance by prioritising politics over the concerns of the people.

Political parties and non-governmental organisations have regularly submitted memorandums of various issues to even the Prime Minister. These submissions are always met with decorum and respect even when opinions differ on the matters at hand.

Noh Omar's conduct is hence clearly unbecoming of a government official, much less that of a deputy minister. He was rude, crass and acted like a hooligan. The greatest irony is not lost on the people must be that he was given the responsibility to curb bullying and gangsterism in our schools!

It is high time for Pak Lah to clamp down on such un-ministerial behaviour not only be demoting Noh Omar come the next general elections, but to drop him as a candidate for UMNO altogether. Only then will Pak Lah demonstrate that the Government doesn't condone such actions and is serious about building a competent government with integrity and in touch with the people.