By Kaki Bedal
Malaysia’s 220 Parliamentarians (latest figures) will choose to pass or reject the 2021 Budget along way on the committee level.
The scenario still uncertainty or unpredictability !
After the 2021 Budget passed at the policy level, the allocation for 11 ministries was passed at the committee level in the fifth week of the Dewan Rakyat sitting after being debated, wound up and through a majority vote and bloc voting process.
There are MPs who described it as an 11-0 victory for the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government, after the 2021 budget allocation for all 11 ministries debated this week passed at the committee level, with four of them through a bloc voting process.
On last Monday, the Supply Bill or Budget 2021 for the Prime Minister’s Department (JPM) was passed at committee level through a bloc voting process which saw 105 MPs voting in favour of the bill, while 95 voted against it and 20 were absent.
The question still around !
Will they choose to support their political game and interest or will they help the rakyat and country in this moment of crisis specially on committee level ?
Two scenarios immediately enters the mind – Pakatan Harapan budget in 2019 and Perikatan Nasional this year.
When PH tabled their budget, it was the biggest one in the history of this country and then PN proposed a bigger one for next year.
The one difference is who’s budget is being felt more as a help and benefit to the people of this country?
We know PH’s budget was tabled in a crisis free environment, yet did the people feel better in their pockets or felt that the economy was going to get better?
We know that PN’s budget was tabled in a crisis ridden environment yet so many aid packages were handed out and followed by more burden reduction to households like electricity rebates and EPF withdrawals.
PH’s Prime Minister when asked about helping the rakyat, chose to ask the people to ‘ikat perut’ or reduce spending despite the bad economy during their time in power.
Compared this to the current Prime Minister who responded to crisis situation by giving as much as he possibly can under so much pandemic not to mention political pressure as well.
Those with long memories should remind supporters of the PH PM and current PN PM to not conveniently forgotten the many ‘bantuan’ in cash and economic programs by former administration of Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
One dare say that what the current administration is doing is an extension of the policies of Najib and Ahmad Zahid who had concentrated to help all levels of society during their time in power.
By-elections won by Umno with the help of Pas and other component parties are testament to returning faith towards the former ruling bloc as people can see clearly the policy difference with PH.
Only those who dislike Najib and Ahmad Zahid for their own personal reasons will deny the more than good proposals by the two former leaders about how to tackle the pandemic impact from an economic perspective, by pointing to their cases in court.
The rakyat is watching who will choose to be heroes and who wants to be traitors vis-a-vis the 2021 Budget on committee level on-goin now with GE15 looming. – BACALAHMALAYSIA.MY
- The writer is an experienced analyst and media practitioner of nearly 30 years in the industry
