Batu Gajah Council Jawi Signage Not Compulsory But To Promote Policy

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The Batu Gajah district council has clarified that the latest directive to include Jawi script on signboards was not a compulsory order, but a policy to encourage and promote the use of Jawi script in their administrative areas.
This came following a concern raised by DAP’s Kampar MP Thomas Su on the rationality of the authority to issue such an order.
In a statement sent to Malaysiakini today, the district council said the directive was issued on Dec 31 last year following the approval during the council’s monthly meeting, with the purpose to enhance the use of Jawi script on advertisement boards and billboards in Batu Gajah, Perak.
“The objective to implement the policy is to act as a mechanism to strengthen the use of Jawi script in the administrative areas, besides preserving the heritage of the script which was once used as the lingua franca in the past.
“This directive did not set the use of Jawi script on signboards as a compulsory requirement to issue business licenses, but instead to encourage and promote the script in the administrative area of the district council,” it said.
Kampar MP Thomas SuPrior to this, the “non-compulsory” part of the directive was only revealed by MCA and DAP after the notice was released last year.
Based on the notice sighted by Malaysiakini, the district council announced that all business license holders shall include Jawi scripts in their commercial signboards from Jan 1 onwards.
“From Jan 1 onwards, all matters regarding new application or renewal of business and advertisement license under the Batu Gajah district council are required to use Jawi scripts on the signboards or premise billboards respectively,” said the notice.
The notice was issued by the chief of the district council, who urged all license holders to prepare and follow the directive in accordance with Section 10(1)(a) of MDBG advertising by-laws 2013.
Earlier today, Su questioned the need for the council to issue the notice if the directive was not compulsory.
He urged the district council to retract the announcement and respect the rights of choice of the local businesses.
“The Perak menteri besar (Saarani Mohamad) also needs to explain whether other districts and city councils need to follow suit,” Su said in a statement this morning.
When contacted by Malaysiakini, Su viewed the directive as an order if there is no black and white from the council.
“When such a notice is sent out, it’s likely that it will be implemented in one day. It should not be sent at all,” he said.
He also revealed that the council only informed him that the directive was actually “non-compulsory” through a phone conversation when contacted by his team.
Meanwhile, the media previously reported that MCA Batu Gajah district councillor Leong Chee Wai said the directive has changed from “compulsory” to “encouragement” after objections by MCA and BN.
According to Sin Chew Daily on Dec 30, Leong said the proposal to include Jawi scripts on signboards came from a party within the Perikatan Nasional, but MCA was strongly against the idea in the meeting.
“Batu Gajah has over 80 percent of non-Muslims. This policy cannot be passed. We are not against the Jawi scripts, but we view that the people have the right to choose,” he said.
However, according to Leong’s statement on Nov 27 last year, he claimed that the proposal came from PAS.
“Despite the proposal not being brought into the council’s meeting yet, Batu Gajah MCA will strongly reject any policy that is against the freedom of religion and culture in this country.
“(MCA) will defend the rights of non-Muslims and willing to resign as protest,” he had said. - Mkini

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