How are PN MPs earning up to RM40,000 per month poor, PM asks

Summary

• Anwar Ibrahim says it’s not possible for opposition MPs to be poor when they earn up to RM40,000 per month.

• PM reiterates that funds are still channelled to opposition constituencies, albeit bypassing the MPs.

• He also tells PN to negotiate better equal funding terms instead of kicking up a fuss.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is puzzled by claims that opposition MPs earning five-figure wages are becoming poor without equal funding from Putrajaya.

Anwar said that even without a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for allocations, their constituencies still get funding, albeit channelled directly to the people or projects instead of going through the MPs.

As such, he questioned narratives that opposition MPs were racking up debts because they don't get equal funding.

"Do you know how much MPs’ salaries are, with allowances for attending (Parliament) meetings and all? It is up to RM30,000-RM40,000.

"If you hear their speeches in Parliament and outside Parliament, it is as though they have to go into debt. If they have many cars or many wives, maybe they are in debt, but I think there's no reason for it," Anwar was quoted as saying by Berita Harian today.

Perikatan Nasional has been going back and forth with Putrajaya about equal funding.

Terms presented to them in September last year include PN making asset declarations and not touching on 3R (race, religion, royalty) in exchange for constituency development funds, which PN had rejected outright.

However, they are now getting the government to set up a committee to come up with a mutual agreement.

Last night, PN chief Muhyiddin Yassin also lamented the terms as being "extraordinary" and "restrictive".

To this, Anwar chided the opposition for making a fuss in public instead of negotiating for better terms.

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"Hold the meetings first. The MOU draft can be amended. Why make a fuss outside? If you want to be a street warrior (hero jalanan), learn first," he said.

Anwar added that the government has held five meetings with the opposition thus far.

‘Don’t lie, Muhyiddin’

DAP Youth chief Woo Kah Leong took issue with Muhyiddin drawing comparisons with how funds were distributed when the latter was prime minister.

Muhyiddin said yesterday that during PN's time in power "we gave (funding to all) without conditions".

Woo had interpreted this as the PN chief claiming that PN gave out equal funding.

"Don't be a hypocrite and lie during this holy month (of Ramadan)," the DAP leader said in denying that there was equal funding.

During Muhyiddin's time as premier, he had in February 2021 - after almost a year in power - allocated RM100,000 to opposition MPs.

Several Umno MPs including Ahmad Zahid Hamidi - who were not aligned to Muhyiddin - were also given the same amount.

Later in June 2021, Muhyiddin's administration doled out an additional allocation of RM300,000 each for all MPs for a food aid programme.

The Bersatu president only offered equal funding to Pakatan Harapan in August that year, in a desperate bid to stay in power after Zahid's camp withdrew support.

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