Yeoh said in the China Press interview that findings from the IIUM study are expected to be announced in March and be released to the public.
She said this research was still required regardless of whether a mayoral election would eventually be implemented, and reassured that MPs and the public would remain informed and get clarity on the matter.
CNA has contacted IIUM for comment.
Weighing in on the issue, PN’s Takiyuddin said on Wednesday that a “more realistic and practical approach” to improving DBKL’s performance would be to focus the study on core administrative and governance issues.
“These include DBKL’s organisational structure, quality of leadership, human resource management, coordination between departments, agencies and the federal government, integrity and enforcement mechanisms, prioritisation, and the quality, speed, and consistency of decision-making,” said Takiyuddin, who is also PAS’ secretary-general.
Any step towards implementing a mayoral election should also require a comprehensive legal review, he said, including how the role of an elected mayor would coexist with the Federal Territories Minister’s authority and other federal executive powers.
“Without clear constitutional and legal amendments regarding executive powers, budgetary jurisdiction, lines of accountability, and conflict resolution mechanisms, introducing a mayoral election risks institutional confusion, overlapping authorities, and the potential for legal and administrative conflict,” he added.
“Therefore, PN MPs urge the ministry to reconsider the focus of the proposed study … instead of dragging the public towards experimentation, a political ‘roller coaster’ and a dangerous idea not grounded in reality.”
DAP TRYING TO REGAIN SUPPORT?
Azmi Hassan, a senior fellow at the Malaysia-based think tank Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research, feels that PN’s reaction is justified given that Kuala Lumpur has a considerable non-Malay population that could elect a non-Malay as mayor, further eroding Malay rights in the city.
“We know the inclination that who will be elected (as mayor) will be very sensitive,” he told CNA, pointing out that Yeoh’s appointment as the first non-Malay Federal Territories Minister last December had also raised similar concerns.
“More so, I think if the council members plus the mayor of Kuala Lumpur are non-Malay, then this will create animosity.”
Yeoh’s appointment was seen by some Malays as a perceived dominance of one race, UMNO’s federal territories youth leader Aliff Fidaus had said then, noting that her position could affect UMNO’s opposition to the government’s proposed amendments to the Urban Renewal Act, which were said to threaten Malay reserve lands.
Anwar subsequently dismissed such criticism, saying that appointing a Chinese person in the Cabinet was “inconsequential” and that Yeoh represented the federal government, not the DAP, in her new portfolio.
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