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PETALING JAYA: Civil servants would continue to be paid their salaries even if the 2021 budget is not approved, says Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.
The former prime minister said it is not true that if the 2021 Budget is rejected, public officials and front-line officials will not receive salaries, pensions and allowances.
“When I was prime minister in 1999, a debate on the budget presented in October did not take place as Parliament was dissolved in November of that year for the 10th general election.
“After the elections were over, the government with the new mandate obtained approval from Dewan Rakyat to receive two or three months of government spending allocation while awaiting the Special Budget Conference to be held in February 2000,” he said in a statement Friday. (November 20).
Dr. Mahathir said that the allocation had ensured that administrative expenses were uninterrupted and that salaries, pensions and civil servants’ allowances were not affected.
“The provision also included payments for other additional appropriations either for ministries or to improve the welfare of the people,” he added.
On November 15, Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said that the government would not be able to meet its commitments, including paying the salaries of civil servants and assisting leaders, if the budget of 2021 is not approved by Dewan Rakyat. .
“The declaration is directly aimed at preventing parliamentarians from fulfilling their responsibility to ensure that the budget is in the interest of the people and not in the political interests of the ruling party,” said Dr. Mahathir, who is also a Langkawi MP.
He added that the parliamentarians who reject the 2021 Budget would be accused of allegedly making the population and officials suffer.
“If that is the position of the Minister of Finance and government leaders, it means that Members of Parliament must give a ‘blank check’ and support the approval of the Budget even though there are significant flaws in the Budget,” he said. .
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