Joint Media statement by Pakatan Harapan Members of Parliament from the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Dated 1st March 2021
1. The announcement made by the Prime Minister during his Federal Territory Day speech that 5,750 bags of rice will be given each week to the B40 group in Kuala Lumpur is turning out to be nothing more than empty promises. To this day, residents are left wondering as to how the bags of rice will be allocated to them. They do not know the application process or whether they are even eligible to apply for this initiative. Has the distribution of rice been tasked to political appointees of the Perikatan Nasional(PN) government, and is this the reason why the rice has not reached its intended recipients?
2.Besides that, RM50 million was allocated to JKM to oversee that essential food items worth RM100 would be given to eligible households through the Food Basket Program. The program doesn’t seem to be running as planned. It’s been three months since the Declaration of Emergency was announced and Malaysians are still unaware on how to get their food baskets.
3.We urge the PN Government to clearly define what mechanisms will be used to distribute the rice and food baskets. Any delay in this action will affect the lives of the most vulnerable in our society during the Covid-19 pandemic. Malaysia does not need the PN Government’s report card to show how well they performed in giving feel-good speeches with empty promises, while the rakyat doesn’t feel the benefits whatsoever.
Based on these reasons, Parliament should convene so that the elected representatives can get answers to the above questions.
Tan Kok Wai
Member of Parliament, Cheras
Fong Kui Lun
Member of Parliament, Bukit Bintang
Teresa Kok
Member of Parliament, Seputeh
Dr Tan Yee Kew
Member of Parliament, Wangsa Maju
Lim Lip Eng
Member of Parliament, Kepong
Fahmi Fadzil
Member of Parliament, Lembah Pantai
Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad
Member of Parliament, Setiawangsa
P. Prabakaran
Member of Parliament, Batu
Hannah Yeoh
Member of Parliament, Segambut
