Opposition moots National Service freeze to cut budget deficit

BY BOO SU-LYNOCTOBER 17, 2013

UPDATED: OCTOBER 17, 2013 06:56 PM

Anwar said today that PR would discuss next week when
to announce their alternative budget to Putrajaya’s Budget 2014
that will be tabled on October 25. — Picture by Choo Choy May

PETALING JAYA, Oct 17 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) proposed today a moratorium on the National Service (NS) in a bid to slash the budget deficit to 3 per cent of the GDP by 2014.

Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today that the programme, which has killed 22 trainees so far, should be halted next year to allow the formation of a parliamentary select committee to discuss revisions or to cancel it all together.

“Finally, as an example in terms of wastage, we propose that the PLKN (National Service), which is now conducted annually and has caused, unfortunately, deaths of 22 students, needs to be reviewed,” said Anwar at a joint press conference with DAP’s Lim Kit Siang and PAS’ Datuk Mustafa Ali at the PKR headquarters here today.

National news agency Bernama quoted National Service council chairman Datuk Dr Tiki Lafe in September last year as saying that the training programme’s budget in 2012 was RM700 million.

An 18-year-old trainee was murdered at a National Service camp in Pahang last September.

Other deaths at PLKN since it started in 2003 were caused by drownings, viral infections, and other medical factors.

A 17-year-old trainee was raped by a camp instructor in 2004, who was then sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment.

Anwar said today that PR would discuss on either October 20 or 21 when to announce their alternative budget to Putrajaya’s Budget 2014 that will be tabled on October 25.

“First on the Budget, the focus would be on issue inequality because under Barisan Nasional (BN) administration, clearly there is a widening gap between the very rich and the poor, and this, of course, is an issue of concern the Pakatan Rakyat Budget will address,” said the former finance minister.

Putrajaya is seeking to introduce the goods and services tax (GST), possibly in Budget 2014, in a bid to broaden the tax base and narrow the fiscal deficit.

The federal government has stated that it aims to reduce the fiscal deficit from 4.5 per cent of the GDP last year to 4 per cent this year, and gradually to 3 per cent by 2015.

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