It’s government’s moral responsibility to help the people - Experts

KUALA LUMPUR - To secure funding for development and welfare in his constituency, Muar Member of Parliament Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman was determined to run 200 kilometres to Parliament.

Syed Saddiq's four-day run not only garnered moral support from the public but also successfully raised over RM100,000 in contributions.

According to the young politician, the run was a symbolic protest against the unity government led by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, after claiming failure to find solutions through negotiations and correspondence regarding allocations for opposition MPs.

It is undeniable that no provision in the Constitution requires or forces the Federal Government to provide funding to every MP.

Housing and Local Government (KPKT) Deputy Minister Datuk Aiman Athirah Sabu on Facebook said the allocation for MPs is the Prime Minister's prerogative, and it was up to him to give it to any MP he believed could help develop the country and benefit the people.

She added that the government's MPs today did not lavishly spend their allocations and were closely monitored through the MyMP system established since the Madani government took office.

However, Universiti Malaya (UM) Department of Political Science, Public Administration and Development Studies senior lecturer Dr Mohammad Tawfik Yaakub, emphasised that morally, it was the government's responsibility to look after the welfare of the people across political boundaries.

"I believe it is the moral responsibility of any party in government to protect the interests and welfare of the people by channelling funds and implementing development.

"Funds can be allocated to MPs, but the government should set spending SOPs and require them to submit annual spending reports and audits to the government," he told Sinar Premium.

He added that if any MP misuses the allocation for party and personal interests, the funds could be withdrawn, and the individual could be prosecuted in court.

He further explained that the government could also appoint district offices in each state as secretariats to help MPs streamline the process of distributing funds and development allocations in their respective areas.

"Furthermore, if representatives complain about the lack of funds to hire staff and build offices, the government can provide space in district offices and staff for shared use for the benefit of the people," he said.

In addition, he said that the government must also demonstrate maturity and respect for the approaches and initiatives of opposition MPs in their efforts to obtain allocations as long as they do not contravene the law.

"There should be a leap in political maturity compared to the taunts that will only create further political conflict," he said.

Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Kedah, political science, lecturer Firdaus Ramli believes the issue of allocations for the opposition was likely to persist and might continue until the end of the parliamentary term.

"This is because there are still several stages of negotiations that need to be completed before both sides (government and opposition) agree.

"If this issue continues, it will impact opposition MPs' ability to carry out planned activities in their constituencies and increase the pressure on them to fulfil their responsibilities as representatives due to financial constraints," he said.

Firdaus said that even if allocations were not directly provided to opposition MPs, it did not necessarily affect the overall development agenda.

"This is because the allocations can still be channelled through government agencies responsible for implementing development programs at the district and state levels," he said.

He stressed that this allocation issue could be used as political capital by the opposition if they successfully build a narrative that the unity government discriminates against and punishes the people and voters who chose opposition representatives.

"If the people compare this approach to previous governments' practices of providing allocations to opposition representatives, it will strengthen that narrative.

"This could place the unity government at risk and result in voters punishing them in the next General Election (GE)," he said.

He added that voters were mature and able to understand current issues, especially those involving good governance.

"If this principle is not reflected in the allocation issue to the opposition, the government's image, which frequently champions good governance principles in national administration, will be tarnished," he said.