PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim speaks during a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya October 29, 2021. — Picture by Miera Zulyana
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 29 — Ahead of the tabling of Budget 2022, Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has reiterated Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) rejection of “off-budget” projects or expenditure that lack transparency.
To illustrate his point, the Port Dickson MP cited several projects, such as the nationwide 5G rollout and attempts to privatise the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang.
He expressed his concern that the process and justification for the cost for these projects were not explicitly made known to the public.
“What we are most concerned about are off-budget expenditures and off-budget agencies, and on this, we have taken a strong stance and I have asked our parliamentarians to stand up and fight the way and means of how these projects are approved which is not transparent.
“For example, the 5G (project). First, it was announced for RM11 billion but the minister then announced it was RM15 billion. This is where we question the process. Another issue is the situation surrounding Subang Airport that we do not want it to be hidden as it is off-budget.
“At times, the rakyat wouldn’t know. They could be influenced by a few small announcements to give benefits to the rakyat but the off-budget expenditures are not announced,” he said.
Yesterday, PH leaders asked that the government’s 5G plans be debated in Parliament, claiming Putrajaya’s proposed establishment of the RM16 billion special purpose vehicle (SPV) that would have total control over the spectrum distribution right could potentially expose the public to massive debt.
The main Opposition bloc had previously raised the alarm about Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), the SPV that would be given the sole control to develop and distribute the ultra-fast internet technology to private bidders.
The tabling of Budget 2022 by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz is due at 4pm today and will be the maiden Budget for Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration.