Penang Pakatan Rakyat Youth is going into the coming 13th general election with a mission to throw all their support behind the young candidates from their parties.
When asked how many young candidates would be contesting in Penang, state DAP Socialist Youth chief Ng Wei Aik said that the youth are looking at a "30 percent quota".
Ng has declined to elaborate further on the potential seats that the wing is eyeing at the moment.
With this mission in mind, the state Pakatan Youth is offering six special proposals for the community - including free education at the university level and strategic housing policies - ahead of the coalition's planned state convention on March 9.
"These are our voices and we hope to present this proposal at the coming state convention," said Ng (left) in a press conference along with his other colleagues in Pakatan Youth.
"We hope these proposals would be taken up by the state or at the federal level (should Pakatan win the GE)," added the Komtar assemblyperson.
The proposals, dubbed '#Offer222' was put on paper after the Youth wings of the state DAP, PKR and PAS pacts met in Penang on Feb 22.
The number 222 is symbolic, the wing said, and it's also the number of parliamentary seats they currently hold. In addition, it had previously been one of the speculated dates for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to dissolve the Parliament, which did not happen.
This move has been seen as an effort to complement Pakatan'smanifesto - launched on Monday in Shah Alam - which has received some hard-hitting criticisms for not being inclusive enough.
Other proposals in the Youth's offer includes the abolition the National Higher Education Fund (PTPTN) for RM500,000 and a RM500 monthly allowance for university students with families earning below RM3,000.
On the matter of affordable housing that costs RM200,000 and below, the Youth wing suggested a Malaysian youth housing strategy which will benefit those between the ages of 21-40.
Too much political hindrance around
Youth entrepreneurship, personal well-being, green environment and democratic transparency are among the other features listed in the six-point document.
State PKR Youth chief Amir Ghazali (right) said that youths who are interested in the business sectors face many challenges, especially when they are trying to apply for government loans.
"There is too much political interference. For example, when interested youths want to apply for a government loan, they are first asked about their Umno membership," he claimed.
"We want such applications to be open and fair to all, regardless of their skin colour or political affiliation," he added.
When asked if the proposals would conflict with the manifesto, state PAS Youth secretary Afnan Taib Azamuddin has said that it would not.
"Actually, we derived most of it from our policy framework, Buku Jingga. We picked the relevant pointers and zoomed into those relevant for youths to make it more comprehensive for them," he said.
State PAS Youth chief Yusni Mat Piah said that the document is a commitment and reflects on the Pakatan Youth's readiness to face the polls, which must be called by June.
"This also indicates that our election machinery is prepared, and able to face and challenge those of the BN," he added.
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