Mou No Guarantee That Ph Will Support Budget 2022 Says Anwar

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Anwar Ibrahim said that he did not want the situation prior to the 2021 budget vote to be repeated, when the opposition’s views were not properly taken into account. (Bernama pic)KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Harapan (PH) will decide whether to support or abstain from voting for Budget 2022 once negotiations are held and parties can come to an agreement, opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (PH-Port Dickson) says.
He added that the memorandum of understanding (MoU) PH signed with the government should not imply that the opposition is obliged to support the budget.
“Some people think that with the MoU, PH must support Budget 2022. That is not true. In this MoU, it is mentioned that we can take a stand in support (for it), or abstain during the vote, once the bill drafting process has been negotiated and agreed upon.
“This means that it is the responsibility of the finance minister (Tengku Zafrul Aziz) and the opposition to adopt an open attitude and be ready to sit down and negotiate,” he said when debating the King’s speech in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Anwar stressed that he did not want the situation prior to the 2021 budget vote to be repeated, when the opposition’s views were not properly taken into account.
“If we want to have this cooperation, and for us to support or be neutral, there must be a negotiation process and we must agree on the basics,” he said.
Yesterday, the federal government and PH signed an MoU on transformation and political stability.
The MoU, which came after a series of discussions between government representatives and the opposition, was jointly signed by Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and opposition leaders.
It contained potential reforms to parliamentary processes and administration, aimed at bringing about the political stability needed to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak and to revive the country’s economy.
Besides Anwar, other signatories to the MoU included DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and Upko president Wilfred Madius Tangau. - FMT

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