KOTA KINABALU:. The legal challenge to the illegal appointment of Datuk Amarjit Singh as Director of the Water Department has been successfully concluded today when the State Government withdrew their appeal against the Kota Kinabalu High Court judgement that the appointment of Datuk Amarjit was illegal. The Court of Appeal hearing that was scheduled for today has been vacated.
On 19 March 2019, Tawau businessman Mr. Pang Thou Chung and I had filed a case to challenge the appointment of the Datuk Amarjit Singh as Director of the Sabah Water Department on the ground that the appointment contravened Section 3 of the Sabah Water Enactment 2003. On 9 October 2019, the High Court had ruled that the appointment of Datuk Amarjit Singh as Director was indeed illegal. The government appealed. That appeal has come to a happy ending today.
This final outcome of the court case is a complete victory for the Sabah public service and the rule of law in Sabah. It is a morale booster for the public servants because public servants have to undergo proficiency training, competency assessments, professional development and also pass government examinations. In contrast, Datuk Amarjit, an active member of Party Warisan, never had to undergo any course nor sat for any civil service examinations before being made the head of a government department. His glaring lack of public service qualifications has been quoted as a cause of several problems and costly legal suits that are now badly affecting the government.
For instance, on his first day at work, he cancelled two on-going water supply projects in Tawau and Lahad Datu. The cancellation of the two water supply projects has unnecessarily delayed badly needed water supply in the two districts. The resumption of the Tawau water supply project had incurred extra costs on the government.
At the beginning of 2019, the 1,335 workers at the water treatment plants all over Sabah have had their salaries delayed for months due to administrative weaknesses. This had caused sufferings to the workers and the families.
Funny rules on plumbers were invented whereby plumbers must pass medical tests as tough as that for aeroplane pilots, such as not having alcoholic problems in the LAST FIVE YEARS. Plumbers also must have eye sight that is good enough to see in the dark (like a night owl). These rules have made hundreds of plumbers jobless overnight. Experienced plumbers were forced to sit and pay for written examinations before their licences can be renewed.
The mystery over the selection of a Penang-linked contractor for the Papar dam remains unresolved.
*Lesson for politicians in the closing days of Warisan*
This illegal Water Director case serves as a lesson for the government of the day (of any political party) to not play around with the integrity of the public service. This is also a fitting lesson for Warisan Ministers in the closing days of their term in office. The Chief Minister, the Minister of Infrastructure (Datuk Peter Anthony) and the then Federal Minister for Law (Datuk V.K. Liew) have aggressively defended the illegal appointment of the Water Director in spite of the court judgment. Datuk V.K. Liew even gave the laughable legal opinion that “the Director of the Water Department is not an officer of the public service.”
*Rule of law has triumphed over rule by man*
I acknowledge the excellent work of our lawyers and that of the State Attorney General Chambers who have had to work under difficult circumstances. The rule of law has triumphed over rule by man.-
Datuk Yong Teck Lee
Co-plaintiff with Mr. Pang Thou Chung
