SHAH ALAM, June 2: The mission of empowering women in Malaysia is clearly reflected in the Selangor Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leadership through the appointment of over 40 percent of women to lead the Exco lineup and for its first woman Speaker.
The Welfare and Women’s Affairs Exco, Rodziah Ismail said that the women empowerment agenda was immediately translated by PR as soon as the coalition successfully took-over the reins of the state administration from Umno-BN in 2008.
She said that the selection of women in the state leadership will bring about a steady continuation in the effort to ensure that the empowerment mission would be given due boost towards improving the women’s quality of life, particularly in Selangor.
“My teammates and I would like to thank you for the trust given.
“It is a gift to the women of Malaysia because the practice of respecting women can really be seen through the leadership of the Selangor State Government,” she said in a media statement.
She said that the Malaysian women empowerment mission also continues through mechanisms approved by the State Government, including the Women Empowerment Centre (PWB) where empowerment in political and decision-making is the main agenda.
She added that the effort is varied through the inclusion of appointing women as members of the Local Authority (PBT) and village heads, making it a field for the group to go to the next level.
“In addition to the merit criteria, a path has also been given on policies of meeting quotas even though the selected woman individual has never previously held the position offered.
“It is the most practical field training in building knowledge and skills, especially in the decision-making process that involves skills of interacting with people and the knowledge of the administration system at various levels in state governance, regulations and laws, as well as perfect documentation,” she added.
The Exco lineup appointed recently featured four new faces as well as retaining six old faces to carry out responsibilities to the people.
Ironically, all three members if the State Exco representing PKR are women; Rodziah Ismail, Elizabeth Wong (Tourism, Consumer Affairs and Environment Exco) and Dr Daroyah Alwi (Health, Entrepreneur Development, Science, Technology and Innovation Exco.
