> Review Budget 2009
Some 20,000 people attended Anwar open house from 2pm to 5pm. Also present were a group of Hindraf members who presented a teddy bear and Hari Raya card to Anwar. Apart from Anwar, his wife Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and daughter Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah, other PKR leaders present were Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, R. Sivarasa and Tian Chua. Also present were PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and deputy Nasharuddin Mat Isa who came for a while in the afternoon.
Pakatan Rakyat (PR) MPs will call for a review of Budget 2009 in the Dewan Rakyat tomorrow, now that the government has a new Finance Minister in Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak.
Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he will talk on the current global economic crisis and the danger of its impact to this country because "Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders are still in denial of this fact".
"One of the first things is to review the budget proposals and figures. Most countries have done that, including Singapore. We need to do that as an urgent matter ... We can’t work on obsolete figures that are unrealistic nor reflect economic fundamentals," he said.
Speaking to reporters at his Aidilfitri Open House in Sultan Sulaiman Club in Kg Baru here today, Anwar said if leaders were not alert towards the people's problem and country's economy, "it is the beginning of a disaster to the country". (The Budget was tabled on Aug 29.)
Anwar said he works on the basis of respect for the Constitution as well as the legal and parliamentary processes.
"Of course we have to accept the possibility of a change by a vote of no-confidence or by an MP's refusal to support the government," he said, citing the case of former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Zaid Ibrahim.
"He (Zaid) resigned on a matter of principle against the Internal Security Act (ISA). What if he then decides to join Pakatan? Is that unlawful, unconstitutional or unethical? It is a matter of principle. He no longer can condone such flagrant abuse of power.
On a related matter, Anwar said he did not give a new date for the transition of power as reported by some today, quoting Dec 8 as the new date of takeover by the PR government.
"I did not give a date about the transition of power. I said we will continue taking the necessary measures and when the time is right, we will see the change. If the MPs and people wanted change, nobody can stop it.
"That is why I don’t bother much about the criticisms coming from Umno leaders. They have said it many times before. They said it was impossible for us to win on March 8, in the Permatang Pauh by-election. But we have proven that people wanted change." - theSun.
