.jpg "Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar is pictured at Parliament in Kuala Lumpur March 26, 2019. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Yusof Mat Isann")
KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 — Nurul Izzah Anwar today explained that she quit Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to stand up for the values she believes in and push forward the agenda of institutional reforms.
The Permatang Pauh MP also revealed that she is worried whether Pakatan Harapan could follow through with its plan and promises, given the pace of reforms which she described as “sluggish”.
“I had to make a strong position in this because, like it or not, we will need to check the possible excesses of the executive with the PAC; its main function is to address that,” she said referring to when she filed her resignation from the PAC
Nurul Izzah then made comparisons to the previous Barisan Nasional administration where the head of the PAC would be from the government, and it’s deputy from the Opposition.
“So this is perhaps the first time in history that we have not just the top but the number two in the PAC coming from the government of the day,” she said.
Datuk Ronald Kiandee was retained as the PAC chairman, despite defecting to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), a party led by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
“I have a lot of respect for Datuk Ronald Kiandee, we worked very well with him. At the end of the day, the structure must prevail.
“It is not about the individuals, it is not about who sits where or the personality, it has to be the structure put in place to guard or be the bulwark against excesses,” she said.
Nurul Izzah also highlighted how a hallmark of institutional reforms, to her, started with the accountability of the PAC.
