Shahidan accuses govt of corrupt practices over allocations

 

Shahidan Kassim says the opposition met with the government twice over allocations for Perikatan Nasional representatives.

KUALA LUMPUR: Putrajaya setting conditions on Perikatan Nasional (PN) MPs if they wish to receive allocations as elected representatives is tantamount to corruption, says Shahidan Kassim (PN-Arau).

He said it also went against the government’s anti-corruption stand.

“The current government claims to be against graft, but their way of doing things promotes corruption.

“If any MP here supports them, they will allocate funds. Is that not corruption? Must allocations be conditional?” Shahidan told the Dewan Rakyat today.

The former Perlis menteri besar reiterated that the coalition has had two rounds of discussion with the government concerning allocations for opposition MPs.

He said one of the sessions was held after a meeting with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

“However, the response was a letter with several stringent conditions, including supporting (the government) until the end of the term,” Shahidan said.

He added that the government should follow the previous government’s lead by requiring the opposition to support the budget instead.

Shahidan’s accusation comes in the wake of two PN MPs, both from Bersatu, pledging their support for Anwar’s government on similar grounds.

Kuala Kangsar MP Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid and Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman said they decided to back the unity government in order to address the plight of their constituents, especially on the rise in the cost of living.

After declaring his support for Anwar, Iskandar was also reported to have said that the allocation would only be channelled to elected representatives who backed the government’s policies.

Bersatu has since suspended Iskandar for four years and removed Suhaili as the federal territories Bersatu head and Labuan division chief.

In 2021, then prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob agreed to provide equal allocations to all MPs for four months.

The agreement was part of a memorandum of understanding between the government and then opposition, Pakatan Harapan, to work together to help bolster economic recovery and restore political stability while the government managed the Covid-19 pandemic. - FMT