PETALING JAYA: DAP has reprimanded two of its Sabah leaders - Chan Foong Hin and Phoong Jin Zhe - for accepting the state’s Panglima Gemilang Darjah Kinabalu (PGDK) awards, which carries the title Datuk.
DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke said this was decided following a meeting of DAP”s central executive committee (CEC) which convened on Wednesday (Oct 25) to discuss, among others, the issue.
“The CEC determined that the actions of the two elected representatives were in violation of the party’s policy, which prohibits accepting any titles while serving as elected representatives.
“Therefore, the CEC strongly reprimanded Chan and Phoong for violating the party’s policy,” Loke said in a statement on Thursday (Oct 26).
Loke reiterated its position that all elected representatives should focus on serving the people and only be considered for any awards after retiring from the elected office.
“DAP expresses our gratitude to the Rulers and Yang di-Pertua Negeri for all award conferments and will continue to honour our royal institution through service to the country and people,” added Loke.
On Oct 8, Loke said Chan and Phoong had violated the party’s policy by accepting the awards, noting that the matter would be deliberated upon at the next CEC meeting.
The PGDK was given in conjunction with the Sabah Yang di-Pertua Negri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin’s birthday celebration on Oct 7.
Chan had told reporters at the time that he accepted the award as a mark of respect and honour from the state governor.
Chan is the deputy agriculture and food security minister and also the Kota Kinabalu MP.
Meanwhile, Phoong is Sabah’s state industrial and entrepreneur development minister and Luyang state assemblyman.
