KUCHING: Calling the state government a “traitor” for accepting the payment of accrued state sales tax (SST) from Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) is rather amusing to Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
It is also ironic since the accuser, former Pujut assemblyman Dr Ting Tiong Choon, was the “opportunist” who quietly applied to be a citizen of another country and then decided to return when the pastures there were not green enough.
“He turned around and called the state government a traitor for having negotiated with Petronas on the payment for the SST. He is the last person qualified to calling anyone or the state government a traitor after he himself was less than loyal to his own state and country,” he told New Sarawak Tribune yesterday.
He was responding to a recent statement by Dr Ting who claimed that the state government’s acceptance of Petronas’ RM2 billion as full payment for the five per cent 2019 SST on Petroleum products was the biggest ‘traitorous decision’ since the enactment of the PDA (Petroleum Development Act) 1974.
Dr Ting was disqualified as Pujut assemblyman after the Federal Court decided on Feb 11 that the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) was right in rejecting him due to his dual citizenship.
After he lost Pujut seat, he was appointed as Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak director of political education.
