SHAH ALAM, Aug 11 — A Pakatan Harapan lawmaker has urged all parties to prioritise “politics of service” over identity politics to ensure the Second Selangor Plan (RS-2) delivers meaningful benefits to the people.
Seri Serdang state assemblyman Abbas Azmi said political discourse should focus on policies and solutions to issues affecting the state, rather than racial and religious sentiments.
“We talk about how to develop Selangor, how to solve flood problems, and how to address waste management issues.
“We provide service, but when elections come, the politics of service is no longer given attention, while identity politics influences voters,” he said when debating the RS-2 during the Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting today.
Abbas’ remarks echoed Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari’s statement on August 1 following the Negeri Sembilan state election, when he criticised the Opposition for campaigning on identity and race-based politics.
Abbas added that the focus should instead be on whether policies benefit the people and strengthen Selangor as a whole, rather than on which community’s interests are being prioritised.
He also questioned the decision by Opposition lawmakers to stage a walkout from the Dewan Rakyat during a ministerial briefing on the Tabung Haji Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report earlier today, despite claiming to champion Malay-Muslim interests.
“If you truly want to champion the cause and correct what has happened…stay, debate, and find the right solution,” Abbas said.
Meanwhile, he urged Selangor to learn from the decline of past empires, citing the Ottoman Empire as an example of how failure to modernise, excessive nationalism, and administrative shortcomings could contribute to the downfall of a once-powerful state.
The assemblyman also supported RS-2’s target of building 200,000 affordable homes, describing it as timely given Selangor’s growing population.
“In Shah Alam, there are now so many people from outside (the area) that it has become ‘Shah Ale’,” he said humorously, referring to the Kelantanese dialect’s pronunciation of the city’s name.
Abbas noted that affordable housing development must be accompanied by adequate public facilities including schools, places of worship, burial sites, parking, and road access.
As such, he called for future development to be more public transport oriented rather than car-centric.
