PJ mayor flayed online for shushing resident representatives
Screenshot of the video showing Petaling Jaya mayor Zahri Samingon arriving at the Petaling Jaya City Council building before he was accosted by resident representatives.
PETALING JAYA: Petaling Jaya mayor Zahri Samingon has received flak online for rudely shushing resident representatives attempting to hand over a memorandum at the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) building today.
He was seen in a video, posted on X by Petaling Jaya Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), being accosted by the representatives when he arrived at the building.
Zahri then told the representatives to take away their protest banners, and shushed them when they responded with questions.
“Shhh. Close first,” he said to the representatives, apparently asking them to shut down the ongoing protest at the foyer of the MBPJ building.
Zahri then repeatedly shushed the representatives when asked why they should take away the banners.
“No, don’t shush us. We have been waiting here for hours,” a frustrated representative said.
The representatives were residents of blocks C and D of Pangsapuri Taman Petaling Utama, who were there to protest over issues with parking and public transport in their area.
They wanted to hand over a memorandum to MBPJ demanding that the council take over the apartment’s maintenance and bear the costs.
The incident resolved itself peacefully, with the representatives later agreeing to meet Zahri inside. However, netizens lambasted Zahri and his bodyguards.
“He is nothing without (the bodyguards) and his position. Realistically, can anyone think of a time they were shushed like this? Even the king doesn’t act like this,” said one @RosaFloera.
Another netizen with the handle @Simple_Peasant1 said that the residents were also there to talk about flash floods caused by faulty drains near their apartment.
“They (residents) have asked for help with this issue for a long time but have not received any response from the city. They have already gone through the proper channels, but no one answered them.”
“Ever tried voicing your displeasure and getting multiple harsh shushes and being treated like a child in return? Datuk Bandar @pjcitycouncil was acting out without a single ounce of professionalism!” said another netizen, @likweis.
Zahri, however, later denied that he was being rude. He said he was only asking the group to remove the banners they had placed on the ground and to lower their voices.
“One person said I was being rude for shushing them, but I said, as a mayor, I need them to remove the banner before we discuss their issue,” Malaysiakini quoted Zahri as saying.