TWO new faces have been appointed as the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) councillors for the term 2022 effective from Jan 1 till Dec 31.
They are John Ooh Sin Hwa (United Buddhist Organisation of Penang) and Nurhafiza Huda Idris (Persatuan Kemajuan Nusa Pulau Pinang).
The duo were among 24 MBPP councillors who took their oath in a swearing-in ceremony in the presence of Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, state Local Government, Housing, Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo and MBPP mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang.
Nurhafiza, 34, said she would be focusing on three main elements such as youth empowerment, women empowerment and eradicating poverty.
“Coming from the background of a non-governmental organisation, I would like to organise workshops pertaining to youth empowerment.
“I am also keen on championing gender equality to empower womenfolk.
“Alleviating poverty in our community is also one of my objectives,” said Nurhafiza, who formerly worked in the manufacturing industry.
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Ooh said he wants to help bring in more revenue for MBPP.
“I would like to assist the Malaysian Siamese community who are a minority group here, as well as ensure the welfare of the Buddhist community,” he added.
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Chow congratulated both the newly-appointed as well as those who were reappointed as the MBPP councillors and urged them to continue upholding the tradition and the excellence of MBPP whilst empowering the organisation.
“Serving as a connector between the state government and the people, all councillors should understand their respective areas of responsibility and functions.
“And they should be sensitive to the current situation and circumstances in order to ensure the delivery of services can be done according to the growing needs of the people. They are considered as the frontliners in receiving complaints from the public.
“I believe MBPP is one of the best organisations that is always ready to change its system and the way a particular work is implemented.
“MBPP also restructures the organisation’s management, which includes the financial management and service delivery without any compromise and upholding the practice of good governance,” said Chow during the ceremony which was held at the City Hall today.
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Chow also told the MBPP to be climate-sensitive when planning and observing a development.
“MBPP should be on a ready mode to deal with occurrences of natural disasters such as flood, landslides and falling of trees,” he added.
Meanwhile, Yew said his team has received several accolades internationally and locally due to their high dedication and commitment towards their duty.
“Among the awards received were the 4th Wego Award for Green Connectivity, Jean-Peal-L’ Allier Prize for Heritage, National Scroll of Honour Award for Human Settlement and Asean Clean Tourist City Standard award.
“These awards proved that MBPP is on the right track with emphasis on creating a low carbon, sustainable and a resilient city. At the same time, it will further strengthen the implementation of our (MBPP) green agendas.
“The recent floods, which took place in several states in Malaysia, have sent a strong reminder to MBPP to take into consideration the ‘carrying capacity’ during an urban planning.
“Therefore, we stay committed to implementing the green initiatives which are in tandem with the initiatives outlined in the Nationally Determination Contributions (NDC) to reduce the emission of greenhouse gas so as to delay the impact of climate change,” he added.
Story by Tanushalini Moroter
Pix by Muhamad Amir Irsyad Omar
Video by Ahmad Adil Muhamad