KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 ― The full text of the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) that has been shrouded in secrecy will soon be made public, International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed told the Dewan Rakyat today.
Members of the public will be able to access the documents on his ministry’s website, he said, adding that he hoped to upload them all within the next 24 hours.
“The full text will be made public… maybe in the next 24 hours.
“This text is long, there are 30 chapters, few hundred pages including the annexes, appendices, and schedules of sort.
“I want to inform this matter here, because it was raised in this Dewan Rakyat to inform to the public… we have nothing to hide, we will inform all,” Mustapa said.
The minister said that the cost benefit analysis on the controversial trade agreement is currently being carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Malaysian Insititute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS).
“As promised by the government, this text will be discussed and decided in the parliament. We have not had an official discussion with the Speaker about this but from our earlier discussions, this will happen in January but this is still subject to the Speaker’s approval,” he said.
He added that if the matter cannot be discussed in January next year, then it will be moved to early February.
Twelve countries, namely Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US, Vietnam and Malaysia, concluded the TPP negotiations in Atlanta on October 5.
The TPPA is a free trade agreement that has been negotiated by the US, Malaysia and nine other nations as part of the larger Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership since 2010.
The controversies surrounding the trade pact also prompted Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (Abim) and two Malay groups to file for a judicial review yesterday to stop the federal government from signing the agreement, yesterday.
The three groups are also seeking a stay order from the high court to stop the government from signing the TPP until the disposal of the merits of the judicial review.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was named as the first respondent in the judicial review application, along with the Ministry of International Trade and Industry as well as the Malaysian government.
The three groups are also demanding that the government immediately reveal and make public the trade deal and all other related documents, and want a declaration that signing the TPP would be a breach of the federal constitution.
