Budget vote - betrayed by Anwar and Harapan MPs

 

Today's headlines should have been dominated by one news item - that PN's Budget 2021 had been rejected and Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was vacating his office.

Instead, we sharpen our knives for Anwar Ibrahim and the leaders of the Harapan component parties namely, DAP and Amanah, who have failed the rakyat, yet again. They were sucked into Anwar's hidden agenda.

The rakyat are seething with rage, and Anwar's statement, "I told Harapan MPs to allow the budget to pass, but only for now," will drag Harapan into the gutter.

Are Harapan MPs closet sado-masochists? Do they enjoy inflicting more mental anguish on the electorate, and do they derive intense pleasure from the pain of obeying Anwar's orders?

Their shock announcement to support PN, sends out confusing and conflicting messages to the rakyat.

There is a trust deficit in Malaysia, and yesterday's move to agree to the budget has not only decreased our faith in Harapan, but also emboldened PN. Anwar and the opposition MPs conceded.

The budget should have been rejected yesterday, instead of waiting for the committee stage, or the third reading to reject it outright.

Last week, I wrote a piece to say that Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, like a true-blue Malay, had used emotional blackmail to force MPs to support his budget. He said that if the budget was not approved, civil servants will go unpaid and critical projects will lack funding.

As a Malay, I am familiar with this blame-game tactic to make others act against their better judgement. Instead of being on his guard, Anwar fell for this trick.

He even admitted to reporters and MPs who questioned his move, that he did not want the rakyat to blame the opposition for the failure of the government to pay civil servants. Is Anwar that naïve?

Most cynics would say that Anwar was only thinking of himself and wanted to look good in the eyes of the Malays by supporting this pro-Malay budget.

If Anwar had the courage of his convictions and really wanted the best for Malaysians, he would have had the confidence to do what he believes to be right, even though others may not agree or approve. In other words, he would have opposed this budget.

Anwar's strategies and his love for numbers have failed him before. In fact, Muhyiddin is a better strategist and his clever use of Malay sentimentality means he can ride roughshod over the rakyat and more importantly, pull the strings that manipulate the behaviour of opposition MPs.

Anwar procrastinates. He is indecisive. He is gullible and vain. He is a poor judge of character and for several years, let the divisive Azmin Ali into his inner circle, despite the concerns of his wife and daughter.

He also lacks authority and discipline. He allowed the Azmin and Rafizi Ramli factions to fester and undermine PKR. He failed to control the infighting within his party, and this drew attention to his lack of leadership qualities.

His failure to unite his party brings into question his ability to unite a nation. Now, there is open warfare between him and former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

What strategy?

Anwar is very good at waffling. He likes to make broad announcements, like the headline-grabbing news last September, when he said, "I have the numbers (to topple Muhyiddin) but I won't tell you until I have told the king." In other words, he did not have the numbers.

Last week, the question on our minds was, "Will Budget 2021 be rejected and Muhyiddin be toppled?"

Instead, we are left wondering if we are the bigger fools for supporting Anwar and other Harapan leaders who play "follow the leader."

Do opposition MPs have a conscience? Do they care about the interests of the rakyat? How will they respond to their constituents for not rejecting the budget?

Afterwards, when reporters thronged Anwar and opposition MPs for answers, we heard the usual "use of tactical strategy".

What strategy? None of Anwar's strategies has proven effective before.

Anwar said that many of Zafrul's figures were unrealistic. There were no itemised figures and when Zafrul delivered his speech, it was as if a new budget had been tabled.

These facts alone should have been used to reject the budget outright. Instead, Anwar did what most pen-pushers do. He said he would wait for the committee stage and the budget's third reading to voice the concerns of the opposition MPs.

This is the golden rule of poor organisers who want to look important. Arrange a meeting to decide on the next meeting, and put off what they could do today for another day.

If Anwar wanted to show leadership, he should have put his foot down and not let Zafrul off so easily. Undoubtedly the House speaker will throw him out of Parliament, but at least the rakyat will be convinced that Anwar tried to speak up for them.

Instead, we feel betrayed by Harapan. One wonders if both Muhyiddin and Zafrul will have more tricks up their sleeves to thwart Anwar, yet again and approve Budget 2021 at the committee stage and at the third reading.

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MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO). Blog, Twitter. - Mkini

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.