Deputy finance minister’s reply a real washout and a shame

The deputy finance minister Tengku Putera Tengku Awang’s parliamentary reply yesterday in the committee stage debate on the Finance Ministry, allocated RM23 billion or 16.8 per cent of the total 2006 budget of RM137 billion – the single largest allocation for any Ministry – was a real washout and a shame.

It was not only Opposition MPs who had spoken, like Dr. Tan Seng Giaw (Kepong), Teresa Kok (Seputeh), Fong Po Kuan (Batu Gajah), Kamaruddin Jaafar (Tumpat), Sallehuddin Ayub (Kubang Krian) and myself who were not satisfied with Tengku Putera’s reply, I dare say that all the 30 MPs who had spoken in the debate, the majority of whom are from the Barisan Nasional, would not have given the deputy minister a pass mark for his reply.

Tengku Putera had spoiled a very good start in Ministerial responsibility and accountability to Parliament initiated by the 2006 Budget debate. Some 25 of the 34 Ministers spoke on behalf of their Ministries during the policy debate at the second reading of the Supply Bill – a record number in recent parliamentary history.

When the committee stage debate involving Ministry-by-Ministry scrutiny started on Monday, the first Ministry – the Prime Minister’s Department – took off with a flying start with four Ministers in the PM’s Department queuing up to reply to the points raised by the MPs – Nazri Aziz, Mustapha Mohamad, Dr. Maximus J. Ongkili and Dr. Abdullah Md Zin. This must be the first time in parliamentary history so many Ministers took part in the winding-up debate for a single Ministry.

The Finance Ministry was the second Ministry to be debated. As a Ministry headed by the Prime Minister himself, the Finance Ministry should have ensured that the new high standard of Ministerial responsibility and accountability would have been kept up.

Despite his mourning at the loss of his wife, Endon Mahmood, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has decided on a hectic “work-as-usual” schedule. Today’s media reported the Prime Minister’s many activities yesterday, such as chairing the National Finance Council and attending a briefing of the Road Transport Department on the proper strategy to reduce Malaysia’s shocking road accident rate and toll. The second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop was also pictured as accompanying the Prime Minister in the National Finance Council meeting.

In these unusual circumstances when the two Finance Ministers could not make it to Parliament for the winding-up of the Finance Ministry committee stage debate, it was incumbent on the Deputy Finance Minister standing in for them to put up a high-quality parliamentary performance which, if not of Ministerial standard, would be worthy of the occasion.

Unfortunately, Tengku Putera’s performance not only failed to match any Ministerial standard, it was not even up to parliamentary secretary level.

(to be continued)