IF WELFARE A BRIBE, THEN SELANGOR SHOULD CEASE FIRST

A case of “the pot calling the kettle black” when Menteri Besar Azmin Ali calls BR1M a bribe despite Selangor doing much the same with its welfare handouts.

Hafidz Baharom, Free Malaysia Today

You would think this topic would be over by now, but apparently Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali just cannot seem to let it go.

He has said the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M) is a bribe, yet again.

(SEE: Azmin maintains that BR1M is ‘corrupt’, won’t be continued if opposition win GE14)

Let us consider what constitutes a bribe – a payment of incentives in order for a favour – a quid pro quo, so to speak.

What exactly is the federal government getting in return for BR1M?

Votes? There isn’t exactly an “Aku janji undi BN” (I pledge to vote BN) clause in accepting the cash handout.

Plus, if this welfare plan is considered a bribe, then I suggest the Selangor government end all its welfare programmes on the same basis.

The free 20 cubic metres of water; the school kids’ assistance; the single mothers’ welfare assistance; the senior citizens assistance; and even the Selangor Foundation handouts for college students.

Heck, the Selangor government bribes parents in the state to the tune of RM1,500 just for giving birth through Tabung Warisan Anak Selangor (TAWAS), regardless if they are the children of millionaires or poverty-stricken families.

At the very least, BR1M is based on income.

After all, aren’t Selangor’s welfare handouts also considered bribes, since it guarantees the popular support of Selangor citizens for their state government?

These aren’t bribes? Why?

More a case of the pot calling the kettle black, in my personal opinion.

Of course, the Selangor government would probably point out that they do so only for the needy in their state and not everyone.

Well, the federal government dishes out BR1M to everyone because they are the federal government while the Selangor and Penang governments limit theirs to those within their borders. What’s the difference?

If ever Pakatan Harapan wins the federal administration, then by all means do your own social experiments.

Till then, perhaps Azmin should stop bribing the people of Selangor with welfare handouts whilst telling the federal government to stop doing the same with BR1M.

Also, perhaps tell his coalition colleagues in Penang to stop their welfare bribing as well?

Otherwise, it really seems hypocritical to accuse one side giving welfare as “bribery” while you do the same under the banner of “the people need aid to live”.

Furthermore, allow me to remind everyone what the late Tok Guru Nik Aziz said about accepting these so-called “bribes” and the business of elections.

“If they offer money, take the money. But when it comes to an election, cross the moon,” he said, mentioning the PAS logo.

Whatever welfare plan any coalition dishes out is no guarantee of votes. Selangor had 1,017,403 BR1M recipients in 2016, as Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani reminded everyone in October last year.

What this shows is that there is a huge population in Selangor who, even with all the welfare/bribery by the state government, are finding it tough to make ends meet, and registered for the aid.

And bear in mind, they registered for it. It’s not like the federal government went after them and shoved it down their throats.

In other words, these people in Selangor made the effort to do the paperwork in order to receive the aid.

But does this translate to votes?

It didn’t in 2013. So why is Azmin and the Selangor Pakatan Harapan continually harping on providing welfare to those in dire need of it?

Make no mistake, I share Prof Jomo Kwame Sundaram’s views on BR1M.

There is the issue of mishandling in the delivery of such aid plans, but those can be seen in any nation dishing out welfare. Kinks happen, and should be ironed out.

But the politically vengeful stance of PKR, and in some cases Pakatan Harapan as a whole, reeks of putting politics before needs. It has to stop.

However, if the Selangor government insists on continuing with this stance, then it should lead by example and end all welfare plans it has established since being in government, just to end their hypocrisy.

Just tell all the poor citizens in Selangor to register with the Welfare Department and state zakat establishments for handouts instead.