Second MoU? Might as well be unity government, says PKR man

 

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and PH leaders signed the MoU in September last year.

PETALING JAYA: A PKR assemblyman has rejected the idea of a second memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Pakatan Harapan (PH) and the ruling government, saying it would effectively turn the federal administration into a unity government.

This follows DAP’s push for a second MoU to bring meaningful reforms, as the perceived “end-date” for the MoU is the end of the month. Those in the ruling government, however, say the MoU has no “expiry date”.

Penang assemblyman Jason Ong said the opposition should instead be pursuing reforms without another MoU, adding that a fair and right-minded government would carry out reforms without inducement or coercion.

“With the present government’s lacklustre performance over the past 10 months, it can be deduced that the longer it stays in power, the more it will lose the people’s confidence and support.

“For now, the prime minister is caught in a challenging position – he can either save himself, save his party or save the country, but he cannot have them all.

“If he chooses to save the country, he must prioritise the people’s interests and set the country’s affairs in order, starting with fulfilling the reforms stated in the first MoU,” the Kebun Bunga assemblyman said in a statement.

Ong pointed out that if PH were to enter into another MoU, it would likely be forced to be silent on specific issues to respect the agreement.

“If one were to recall the last budget, the opposition MPs were obligated to support the prime minister due to the MoU.

“Furthermore, all the terms of the agreement set out during the first MoU have yet to be fully implemented.

“To date, the prime minister has not tabled the anti-hopping bill, nor has he implemented the two-term limit for the prime minister’s position,” he said.

Ong said the only good thing about the first MoU was that the government now gave equal funding to MPs from parties which were part of the deal.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and PH leaders signed the MoU in September last year, agreeing to work together to restore political stability while the government managed the Covid-19 pandemic and to help bolster economic recovery.

While the MoU does not have an expiry date, it states that the government and PH had agreed not to hold GE15 before July 31.

In March, DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook proposed an extension to the MoU under the condition that Ismail delivers on all items in the agreement.

However, his proposal was dismissed, with Umno affirming its stance that the MoU should not be extended beyond July.

Ismail has the support of 116 MPs in his coalition, while PH has 90 members in the 222-seat Dewan Rakyat.

His supporters in the Cabinet say the MoU has no bearing on his prime ministership. - FMT