The salary hike for elected representatives of Selangor is meant to stop the lawmakers making extra income, Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim said today

"This income (hike) is suitable for the people's representatives and state executive councillors as they will no longer need to find extra income from outside. This has happened (before)," Khalid told the media at the state assembly complex today.

khalid ibrahim interview 190513 01 He said some of the federal ministers too could be looking for extra incomes to sustain their political work.

"Though they get the salary of a minister (besides the MP's or senator's allowance), they sometimes may need to get extra income (duit dari luar), to pay for their work," he said.

"So, this has been difficult for us as well."

Khalid defended the remuneration increment as "not high" and "reasonable", if compared with wages in the private sector.

He said the state government has taken into consideration objections from the rakyat on this matter.

It therefore chose the salary of the Sarawak assemblyperson as a basis and worked out a 30 percent lesser rate on the new salary for the Selangor assemblypersons.

Though both states have financial reserves, Khalid said, Selangor was bigger than Sarawak in terms of economic performance.

Khalid added that the media has been treating Selangor unfairly over the matter and blowing the issue out of proportion, despite the fact that everything was above board and done in a transparent manner.

He said that in contrast, the media had remained relatively silent about the dramatic pay increase of Sarawak's state legislative assembly members.

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