Form shadow cabinet now, Pakatan chief told

Another PKR delegate has called on Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim to form a shadow cabinet immediately to monitor the administration of the Barisan Nasional-led federal government.

Debating at the PKR Congress in Shah Alam on its final day today, Penang delegate Tan Tee Beng said Anwar should come up with the shadow cabinet despite "most of the power being in the hands of the federal government."

He said this should be done although the party runs the risk of having its views manipulated.

Monitoring the administration of the federal government at this level could also ensure check and balance, he explained.

"But we all know our views would be manipulated like we are low-class citizens and they are the intellectual ones," said Tan, who is also the MP for Nibong Tebal.

Recently, 18 civil society groups had also urged Anwar to set up a Pakatan Rakyat shadow cabinet as soon as possible to prove that they are ready to govern when the need arises.

They said Anwar must present his team of shadow ministers when premier-in-waiting Najib Abdul Razak announces his line-up in March.

In an interview with Malaysiakini just before the Permatang Pauh by-election, Anwar had said that he would make the formation of the shadow cabinet his priority after the by-election.

However, there has been no official news from Pakatan on the shadow cabinet although there were speculations that the parties - PKR, PAS and DAP - had agreed to ink a common agenda which could lead to the formation of a shadow cabinet.

ValueCap, poverty and education

Meanwhile, the delegates at the PKR congress debated the resolutions on economy, education and the president's speech this morning.

Wan Rahim Wan Hamzah (Terengganu delegate)

Now we are worried about the situation of ValueCap Sdn Bhd, where the government has decided to inject RM5 billion from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) - our money to safeguard our future - to save KLSE.

This has raised some eyebrows, what if it fails to save the company and KLSE. Who would be responsible for the loss?

If Pakatan forms the federal government, I suggest that the leadership draft an economy plan carefully to help cushion the economic crisis.

Haris Bakar (Selangor delegate)

We need reform to ensure a smooth management of government-linked companies (GLCs) and these companies should be monitored to avoid mismanagement.

I would also like to suggest that the wealth from natural resources be given back to the people immediately through the ‘communitarian economy’ programmes that we have set up.

Baru Bian (Sarawak delegate)

There is concern for the basic need of education in rural schools in Sabah and Sarawak. Many rural schools in Sabah and Sarawak are in deplorable conditions until today. I still remember when I was young, I used to walk five hours to go to school and had to stay there for five days and only come back home for the weekends.

Until today, they are still waking to get to their nearest schools. These two states should be given high-level priority. Scholarships should also be provided to students who come from rural areas.

Hamzah Amir (Sabah delegate)

There are a lot of factors that contribute to poverty in Sabah and we have the highest poverty rate in the country after Kelantan. This is also one of the reasons why there has been a major deterioration in SPM and STPM results this year.

Thus, I would like to suggest, if Anwar is to lead the country, it would be good if Sabah and Sarawak have the highest priority so that these states would not be sidelined when it comes to allocation of fund.