Jasa allocation cut proof of sincerity in budget negotiations - Zafrul

 

The proposed allocation reduction for the Special Affairs Department (Jasa) is proof of the government's sincerity in budget negotiations, said Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

"There's only one (budget cut) that has been requested by both sides, actually. So (on Thursday) I raised the motion to cut from Jasa's side to show our sincerity," he said in an interview with The Edge.

The opposition has accused Zafrul and the government of ignoring their requests and concerns in the budget debates and of not holding further consultations with them.

Both the opposition and Umno MPs have said that funding for Jasa was not necessary under Budget 2021.

It is not clear how much will be cut from Jasa's RM85.5 million allocation.

Zafrul said this will be decided by Wednesday when the Communications and Multimedia Ministry's budget is debated at the committee stage in the Dewan Rakyat.

Communications and Multimedia Minister Saifuddin Abdullah had previously told Parliament that Jasa would not be used for propaganda purposes.

He said Jasa would be rebranded as "Jabatan Komunikasi Komuniti" (J-kom) and will be used as "two-way" communication channel between the government and grassroots.

Budget 2021 passed the policy stage on Thursday with a voice vote.

This is after Zafrul announced extra incentives, including expanding withdrawals from Account 1 of the Employee's Provident Fund.

This partly met Umno's demands in exchange for supporting the budget.

Critics say expanding the Account 1 withdrawal conditions could have adverse effects on the EPF.

However, the finance minister said it would not have any long term negative effects on the fund.

"For sure, no. We won't do it if it did," he said.

He also said that EPF will have to rebalance its portfolio but that this can be done over time.

Other incentives announced on Thursday include expanding special allowances to all frontliners and not just those in the Health Ministry.

Zafrul told The Edge making concessions on the budget was "not a tough decision". - Mkini