KOTA KINABALU – The freshly-tabled budget will have to be retabled once a new parliament is elected following the early dissolution of the Dewan Rakyat, said incumbent Kota Kinabalu MP Chan Foong Hin.
In a statement, Chan said Budget 2023 was clearly tabled as an election manifesto with the developmental spending doubled than the usual figure instead of allocating funds where they were needed.
“I wish to criticise that this is an unproductive budget.
“RM94.3 billion has been allocated for development expenditure under the Budget 2023, with Sabah and Sarawak getting RM11.7 billion,” he said.
Earlier, caretaker prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri announced the dissolution of parliament despite Pakatan Harapan (PH) leaders’ opposition against calling for an early election due to the monsoon season.
“In no uncertain terms I would like to say that the snap election to be called soon is utterly regrettable for its timing.
“Given that three PH states and three PAS states have decided not to dissolve their state assemblies concurrently, the nation would still need to have another round of mass election,” he said.
Chan said around RM1.1 billion will be spent for the 15th general election and the cost would rise further if six states also do the same.
“Besides that, monsoon-related flooding is on the way. It can be seen that UMNO-BN is not concerned with people at all, but more with consolidation of power,” he said.
Speaking on his achievements, Chan who once held the post of Labuan Port Authority chairman said he has managed to appoint a port operator via open tender instead of closed tender procedures.
“I also had the distinction of having my signature in a gazetted document (Port Tariff) appearing together with Wee Ka Siong, whom I was not supposed to serve under!” he said.
Chan however said “a lot of things were still not in place” although Labuan Port was gazetted in 2017.
“However, my stint as government MP did not last long as the Sheraton Move happened just 22 months after the general election.
“In fact, I ended up serving longer as an opposition MP in the 14th Dewan Rakyat. In government or in opposition, it doesn’t really matter to me as I am well aware who my real bosses are, namely my constituents in Kota Kinabalu,” he said.
Chan also took a swipe at former DAP colleagues who had abandoned the party, accusing them of trying to stay in power during the Sheraton Move.
Towards this end, he also urged the voters in Kota Kinabalu to come out in full swing in the forthcoming election, saying that the next election will be important to see whether the “kleptocrats will be allowed to rule Malaysia again with impunity.” – The Vibes, October 10, 2022
