Copy claim proves opposition agree with Budget 2018 — Salleh

KOTA BELUD: The opposition’s claim that next year’s government budget presented by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Friday was copied from Pakatan Harapan’s ‘alternative budget’ was proof that the opposition agreed with Budget 2018.

Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak said instead of finding fault with Budget 2018 the opposition complained that the government stole the ideas from them.

On the opposition’s claim that Budget 2018 was a ‘sweetener’ or ‘election budget’, Salleh said, “every year they say the same thing, that the budget was an election budget”.

“Does this mean Pakatan Harapan is saying that Budget 2018 is very good and can entice the voters? Statements such as these from the opposition gives the impression they are very unhappy with Budget 2018 because it is good and not because it is bad. Is that not ironical?”

Salleh said the opposition had been grumbling all year long about “all sorts of things, good or bad so they cannot say that the government did not listen to them as proven in Budget 2018”.

“Therefore the opposition could thank the Prime Minister for the very positive budget instead of continuing to grumble that the budget was a sweetener, an election budget, copied from Pakatan Harapan, and so on,” he said after flagging off the Kota Belud Jamboree held in conjunction with the ‘Tamu Besar’ yesterday.