KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 — Following public outcry over salary increases that will see some in the Selangor state assembly take home almost four times more pay, PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said the party’s state assemblymen will channel part of their wages to a fund for education.
The move appeared designed to assuage public opinion over the increases that will make elected representatives in Selangor the second-highest paid in the country, after Sarawak.
“Each PKR representative will contribute RM1, 000 a month or 20 per cent of total monthly salary increase that was announced, to fund small scholarships and educational programmes under Keadilan’s Children of Selangor Education Fund,” the opposition leader said in a statement today.
Although saying he had discussed the issue with Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, Anwar’s remarks today appeared to lean towards the view of protégé Azmin Ali, who criticised the increase as “too high”.
“Keadilan as a party that champions the spirit of reform must continue to be sensitive to the hardship faced by the majority.”
Anwar said the yet-to-be-established fund will collect an estimated half-million ringgit from the contributions of the PKR assemblyman and will be used to aid students at the secondary and pre-university levels.
The Selangor state assembly announced on Thursday salary increases to elected representatives that would see their pay nearly double, from RM6,000 to RM11,250, starting January 1.
The Speaker’s monthly pay was more than tripled from RM6,109 to RM22,500, while the deputy Speaker’s salary more than quadrupled from RM3,327 to RM15,750.
Khalid, who will see his pay rise from RM14,175 to RM29,250, also gave a 231-per cent pay hike to his state executive councillors, from RM6,109 to RM20,250.
This led to the Selangor Backbenchers Club headed by Azmin to demand the increases by postponed until a review is undertaken.
Yesterday, Anwar gave a more reserved judgment over the increase, calling the raises “a bit high” and saying he would meet Khalid over the issue.
Despite the criticisms, Khalid was adamant on pushing ahead with the salary increases.
Instead, he told representatives unhappy with their windfall to simply donate their newfound funds.
Pakatan Rakyat retained Selangor in Election 2013 with a stronger majority under Khalid’s administration, after the country’s most developed state fell from Barisan Nasional’s (BN) grasp for the first time in the tsunami of the 2008 general election.
Khalid, however, was previously criticised by Anwar over his purportedly tight-fisted management of Selangor’s reserves that touched RM2.8 billion in May 2013.
