What is wrong with some Datuks? Does the title give them the licence to misbehave and lord it over everyone? Who do they think they are?
Yesterday, it was reported that a 36-year-old actor had gone to the Kota Damansara police station to lodge a police report about a road accident.
Whilst he was at the traffic counter of the police station, he lost his temper, and allegedly kicked a civilian and then slapped a policeman. Police chief ACP, Mohd Zani Che Din, confirmed that the man was then arrested.
The actor had recently been awarded a datukship.
This “Datuk” also tested positive for ganja.
Mohd Zani said the actor will be investigated under Section 90 of the Police Act for behaving indecently at a police station.
It should come as no surprise to many Malaysians, that the actor received his datukship from Pahang last month.
Over the years, we have read many reports about gang leaders involved in shoot outs, who were later found to be Datuks, who were arrested for assault, who are involved in criminal activities and who are habitual drug users. Some of them are very young. It is also alleged that whole families – father, sons, uncle, have also been awarded Datukships.
Purchasing Datuk Titles
In March 2016, the Sultan of Perak, Nazrin Shah, demanded immediate action against the people operating the scam involving the purchase of the datuk award. He warned that the conmen’s activities would lead to a rise in people being duped into purchasing fake titles, which were not recognised by the state.
Some people have asked why this was suddenly made a critical issue, because the problem of the buying of awards has been known for many decades.
One social observer said, “If the authorities are worried that people had to pay for the award, then why did they not tackle the negative public perception much earlier? Or are they worried that certain people, and not the coffers of the state government, that are benefiting from the scam? They only have their lack of enforcement to blame.
“It is like the RM100 million corruption scandal in the Youth Ministry. The corrupt official had been milking the ministry for six years. The perpetrators were said to have taken advantage of a loophole in the system. The internal audits should have highlighted the weaknesses in the system. Their poor work practices are at fault. ”
We often wonder how to detect if a person’s datukship is genuine and not a fake. Is there a website which lists the datuks from all the states? What is their contribution to society?” Is there a list that gives the reason for bestowing the datukship. Some awards are clearly suspect, especially when triad leaders are involved. Is there a vetting process?
One friend alleges that he knew of a pilot who insisted that he be given the responsibility of flying the Sultan of a particular state, and his entourage to London. He said, “The pilot eventually received his datukship, which he used to invite investors into his business scheme. After that, he no longer cared if he flew royalty. He had achieved his objective.”
Are convicted Datuks stripped of their titles?
Who is in charge of scrutinising the award process? Clearly it is not working.
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