KUALA LUMPUR, April 14 — The Pakatan Harapan (PH) Presidential Council has urged Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to call for a special Parliament sitting, ahead of the original scheduled date of May 18.
The former ruling coalition stressed the need for a bi-partisan approach is needed to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, drawing comparison to the World War II.
“Since 1945, there was no pandemic that affects the global population simultaneously. An economic crisis is bound to happen, and could be worse than the Great Depression in 1929.
“In fact, the economic crisis faced now is worse than the Asian Financial Crisis which occurred between 1997 and 1998 and, World Economic Crisis in 2008,” the council said in a statement.
The statement also reminded the Perikatan Nasional government that it has yet to answer several questions regarding job security.
“Hundreds of thousands of Malaysians working in Singapore and elsewhere around the world are also facing similar possibilities.
“Those who work in the informal and self-employed sectors are people who are very burdened as the government’s ‘economic stimulus plan’ is insufficient to help them,” it said.
Therefore, PH viewed that highlighting the discussion of employment should be made priority and is important as the government plans for the economy.
It added that both domestic and export markets have contracted, hence the government needed to provide a medium-term and long-term plan that will stimulate demand and generate business opportunities.
“Otherwise, the economy will stagnate and decline when the impact of this short-term intervention diminishes,” the council said.
Citing measures taken by countries abroad such as Canada, the country has just held a parliamentary session with leaders from the ruling party and the Opposition, and has agreed to a US$73 (RM227.52) billion salary subsidy programme.
To observe safe distance, the sitting was only attended by 32 out of 338 MPs.
PH suggested today for a virtual sitting, saying it is ready for debates in this manner.
“We need a bi-partisan approach to show our solidarity with Malaysian when faced with nationwide challenges.
“The prime minister must show that he is ready to ease these challenges by calling for a special Parliament sitting,” the council added.
Earlier, PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said, the issue of a no-confidence vote will not arise if a special parliamentary session is convened to debate the country’s ongoing Covid-19 measures.
