KUALA LUMPUR, April 6 — Perikatan Nasional (PN) leadership will reportedly hold discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof to negotiate equal allocation for Opposition MPs, Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man reportedly said.
The deputy president of the PN component PAS said three MPs had been appointed to represent the federal Opposition bloc in the negotiations: Opposition Leader and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's Larut MP Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, PAS' Kota Baru MP Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan, and Bersatu's Putrajaya MP Datuk Radzi Jidin.
“The prime minister has said that he will allocate the same amount as the government MPs,” he was quoted saying by Harian Metro, referring to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“We want to see a commitment to the allocated sum for us, and if there are any conditions imposed.”
Tuan Ibrahim was commenting on the progress of the equal allocation for Opposition MPs after it was reported last month that the government was prepared to provide it through proper negotiation.
On the announcement, the Kubang Kerian MP said he welcomed Anwar’s statement that the allocation to all Opposition elected representatives will be matched with their parliamentary counterparts on the government bloc.
However, Tuan Ibrahim hoped the additional allocation could be channelled as soon as possible to assist the people, especially during Ramadan month.
“I expect that both parties will only need one discussion session as part of the negotiations to finalise the allocation,” he said.
Previously on March 7, it was reported that Anwar had agreed in principle for the government to provide equal allocations to federal Opposition representatives.
However, the prime minister said the additional allocations could only be approved once the matter is concluded through a proper negotiation process.
