OPPOSITION PARTIES TO UMNO: FORGET SNAP POLLS, HANDLE NATIONAL CRISIS FIRST

5 JAN 2021

By Wartawan Nabalu News

KOTA KINABALU: A total of 13 members of parliament and a senator from seven parties rebuked Umnno's continuous demand to hold snap polls despite the crisis that the country is facing at the moment.

With Covid-19 cases rising on a daily basis, several states hit by severe floods, and unemployment rates and reduced income continue to rise, the MPs find Umno's decision to press for a general election to be appalling.

"Just last month, Parliament passed a budget of RM322.5 billion, the largest budget in the history of this nation purportedly to fight Covid-19.

"Barely three weeks after this supposedly people-friendly budget was passed, UMNO now wants to use fresh elections as a trump card to grab more power at the expense of Malaysians' wellbeing and health safety. They have bared their true colours for all to see," they said in a joint statement, today.

The joint-statement was signed by Datuk Darell Leiking, Datuk Azis Jamman and Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis from Warisan; Hannah Yeoh, Yeo Bee Yin, Sivarasa Rasiah and Teo Nie Ching from PKR; Mahfuz Omar, Khalid Samad and Salahuddin Ayub from Amanah; Amiruddin Hamzah and Senator Marzuki Yahya from Pejuang; Syed Saddiq (Muda); and Baru Bian (PSB).

"We are reminded of this - Najib Razak once urged UMNO members to defend Putrajaya at all costs. “Even if our bodies are crushed and our lives lost, brothers and sisters, whatever happens, we must defend Putrajaya”.

"Malaysians must reject such wicked and selfish ambition for power. We have lost enough from years of misgovernance and corruption. This nation needs to heal and the time to heal is now," they said.