The President, Vice-President & Members of the General Committee
Royal Lake Club
Kuala Lumpur
15 August 2024
Dear Sir/Madam
Re: Appeal pursuant to RLC Constitutional Rule 19.5
I am
writing in response to the letter from the Secretary dated 2nd August 2024,
which has left me, along with many of my fellow RLC members, in utter disbelief
and disgust. We are deeply aggrieved, outraged, and appalled by the
Disciplinary Committee's (DC) unjust and wrongful judgment finding me guilty of
breaching RLC Constitutional Rule 18.1.
I am
lodging this appeal with the belief that there are General Committee (GC)
members who are principled, fair-minded, unbiased and perhaps God-fearing, who
will seek to uphold justice by thoroughly examining the truth. The DC's actions
represent a blatant miscarriage of justice that is shocking, despicable, and
unacceptable for a club of our standing and repute.
I am
now lodging an appeal against the entirety of the decision rendered by the
Investigation and Disciplinary Committee (ICDC) as stated in their letter dated
2nd August 2024, as a victim of
injustice, NOT as a guilty party seeking mercy.
The
DC’s poorly written letter delivering the verdict dated 2nd August, failed
to specify/quote the rule or byelaw I allegedly breached, or clearly state the
specific actions deemed as conduct unbecoming or injurious to the club. This
lack of transparency and accountability strongly suggests not only procedural
shortcomings but also they could not find concrete evidence of any wrongdoing
on my part. I reiterate that the DC, through their willful actions, omissions,
and gross negligence, has committed errors in both law and fact, as detailed in
Sections A and B below.
I
sincerely hope that members of the GC will review all the documents attached to
evaluate fairly and reasonably the following factors in my appeal as outlined below.
A. RLC
Constitutional Rules & Bye-Laws
The RLC Constitutional Rules & Byelaws govern the behavior
of and relationship between members of the Cub which all members must comply
with. Any complaint on the breach of the
Club Rules and Bye-Laws can only be lodged by a member to the ICDC. It seems
very odd that the Secretary, members of the IC and DC accepted a complaint about
me from the GM, an employee, who has no constitutional right to file such a
complaint directly to the ICDC. The GM
can file a report to members of the GC, who can then file a complaint to the
ICDC against a fellow member. Is the
Secretary or members of the ICDC or GC aware of this? Hence, the complaint
by the GM against me to ICDC is invalid, ultra vires the Club Constitutional
Rules and Bye-Laws.
B. No Breach of RLC Constitutional Rule 18.1
The charge against me is stated as “….used the Infant Feeding
Room (IFR) to conduct an online meeting and/or discussion using a laptop
computer. Further when the Duty Manager (DM)…..advised you that you are not
allowed to use the IFR …..and suggested that you adjourn to the Garden Café to
continue your Google Meet you refused to heed the request….” (please refer to Appendix
A, p.15 in bundle).
I did not breach any Club Byelaw by using the IFR (Infant
Feeding Room)/Cubicle when it is not in use by anyone. Members of the GC must take note that there
was no Club Bye-Laws prohibiting the use of the IFR/Cubicle by other
lady members. What is in existence is a
ruling by the GC at its meeting in March 2017 that the IFR need not be used
only for feeding infants. This is evidenced by the email from the then General Manager (GM)
to me in 2017 (Appendix 2 p. 26 in bundle) and extract of the GC meeting
minutes of March 2017 (Appendix B, last page in bundle). In addition, prohibition
for its use by other members was NEVER incorporated into the Club’s
Bye-Laws as evident in the 2018 GC meeting minutes (Appendix 7). The ICDC are
wrong to punish me for using the IFR.
I did not “conduct” an
online discussion on Google meet. No concrete evidence, audio or visual,
was ever presented on this allegation. I was just using Zoom to listen to a
video presentation with my head phone on. How did the DM come to that
conclusion is something beyond imagination! This issue is apparently a
non-issue to the DC as it was not brought up at all during the DC hearing.
I was charged for not complying with the advice of the DM to
vacate the IFR. I did explain to him
the 2017 GC ruling, but to no avail, he
just insisted on imposing his authority. He behaved like a Little Napoleon
would. His two attempts to evict me from the IFR/Cubicle were in direct
violation of the GC decision of 2017, which explicitly allows members to use
the IFR/Cubicle when not in use, thereby breaching Club Rule 22.13. My rights and privileges as a member to enjoy
the club’s facilities were egregiously violated. In spite of this, after his
second attempt, I left to continue my work at the poolside café to avoid
further disruption and for the sake of maintaining decorum during the holy
month of Ramadan. Can the Club allow “Little Napoleons” to flex their muscles to
impose their will on members even if they err, not knowing the Club’s rules? When questioned during the DC hearing, both the DM and GM admitted not knowing of
the 2017 GC ruling.
In addition, members of the GC may wish to find out who was in
the club on that Saturday afternoon to authorize the DM to enter a
gender-segregated room, the Ladies Changing Room (LCR)? Is the GC aware that
his action of barging into the LCR, unauthorized and then unannounced by the
Supervisor or any LCR attendant, constitute a severe violation of women's
privacy and could be considered criminal trespass when brought to court or
reported to JAI (Jabatan Agama Islam)?
From the above, it is clear that the ICDC have committed
errors both in law and in fact as follows:
·
The DC disregarded the GC Decision of 2017
pertaining to the use of the IFR/cubicle in the LCR when it is not in use.
(Appendix 2)
·
The DC ignored the fact that I was lawfully
occupying the IFR/Cubicle in accordance with the GC Directive as in Appendix 2.
·
Rule 22.13 of the RLC Constitution unequivocally
states that all members are bound by GC decisions unless set aside at an
Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM). This rule extends to members of the DC.
·
The directive in Appendix 2 remains in force and
has not been set aside.
·
No evidence was presented during the DC hearing
to indicate that the directive in Appendix 2 had been revoked.
·
By disregarding Appendix 2, the DC has breached
Rule 22.13.
·
By reason of this breach by DC, I have been
wrongfully and unjustifiably punished
·
The DC erred by failing to recognize that the
IFR/Cubicle was vacant and not in use at the relevant time.
· The DC erred by failing to acknowledge that no other
member sought to use the IFR/Cubicle or was denied access while it was occupied
by me.
· The DC erred by failing to consider that no other member was in the LCR during the incident, thus no member of the club was prejudiced, harmed, or had their rights infringed upon due to my lawful occupation of the IFR/Cubicle.
C. Other
Mitigating Factors
Members of the GC would be well informed that members have used
the IFR in the LCR to nap, to read papers or use mobiles to chat or view
videos, or bathe their children in the shower room designated for the
handicaps, although some of these are against the Club byelaws/rules. Has the DM
ever reported these or has the GM ever filed any complaint to the ICDC on these
matters? Why this sudden zeal now to use
a “trumped-up charge” against me even though this discretional use of IFR is
allowed under the GC decision of 2017? Is this gender discrimination, an act of
bullying, selective prosecution or victimization of a powerless, non-voting
lady member? Will the GC allow “Little Napoleons” to reign in the Club by imposing
their authority at will on club members, even though they err and their
knowledge of the Club Constitutional Rules and Bye-Laws leaves much to be
desired?
The GC may also wish to note that the DM and the GM did not
even report or lodge a complaint to the
ICDC against the son of a certain GC member who brought his 11-year-old
son to use the male changing room (MCR) on 3rd
February 2024. This was in breach of the
MCR Byelaw (Appendix 3, p 27 of bundle) - boys below the age of 18 are
prohibited from using the MCR. In punishing me, GC members will be confirming
that there is one set of rules for members like the GC member's son and family,
and another one for ordinary members like me, a powerless, non-voting lady
member, who is now being punished severely for NOT breaching any rule of byelaw,
offending or inconveniencing other members, much less doing anything injurious
to the club?
Hence, it appears that
there may be some “hidden hand” or power that is orchestrating this selective
prosecution against me, even to the extent of involving employees/staff and
colluding with the ICDC, who are supposedly independent thinking and fair-minded members, including legal
professionals?
Incidentally, the malicious misrepresentation of facts about
me in the March 2024 GC meeting minutes (2325.11.6.2) appears to be a
premeditated attempt -- and it may be just the tip of the iceberg -- to cast
aspersions on me and prejudice the entire
GC against me! (It’s noteworthy that the incident of me using the IFR
was just a few days after this GC meeting). I have sent a complaint followed by
evidence in at least four (4) emails from 9 May to 24 June to the Secretary
requesting amendment of this misrepresentation, but till this day no action
seems to have been taken.
In
conclusion, given that no member was prejudiced or harmed and that my
occupation of the IFR/Cubicle was in strict accordance with the GC directive,
the DC's decision to convict me, and arbitrarily impose a three-month
suspension and a fine of RM 500 is fundamentally flawed. The DC through their willful act, omission
and gross negligence has clearly committed errors both in law and in fact. I
respectfully, yet firmly, request members of the GC to thoroughly review the
case to address these fundamental flaws and grant this appeal, to overturn the
wrongful conviction and its associated penalties. Doing so will greatly enhance the credibility of the GC, and help
restore Club members' trust and confidence in the governance of RLC which is
primarily based on the rule of law.
Thank
you.
Yours
faithfully
Gan
Siowck Lee (LO713)
Attached
herewith are:
1.
Bundle of documents (32 pages) previously
presented for DC hearing
2.
Appendix 7
3.
Letter from Secretary/ICDC dated 2nd August 2024
C.C. All GC members
No comments:
Post a Comment