Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim failed in his bid today to move a motion in the Dewan Rakyat to debate the significant dip in the profits of national oil and gas company Petronas.
Deputy speaker Wan Junaidi Jaafar decided that the matter is not sufficiently urgent to be debated, although it is an issue of public importance.
Unhappy with the outcome, Anwar (PKR-Permatang Pauh) pointed out that it is important for the House to debate an issue which will have a huge impact on the economy.
Petronas’ net profit before tax for the first half of the financial year was RM31.2 billion, compared to RM63.3 billion in the same period last year, he said.
Its revenues dipped by 37.5 percent to RM98.2 billion from RM157.2 billion. The drastic decline in crude oil prices at around US$75 (RM255) per barrel had affected its income.
In short, he argued, the 2010 Budget tabled in Parliament last month will be short of about RM57 billion.
When tabling the motion, Anwar said the budget relies on Petronas for more than 40 percent of the national revenue from tax and dividends. He therefore called for the budget speech to be re-tabled for debate.
It is important for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who is also the finance minister, to explain the issue to the people, he said.
“Our position is not to ask for a total revamp of the budget, but the government has to explain if there will be any reduction of the allocations,” he said.
Small concession won
Unconvinced with this argument, Wan Junaidi said the prime minister would have already considered the matter when he tabled the budget speech.
“The government has taken into consideration that oil prices have fallen this year. So there is no need to debate the motion. Petronas has assured that it can pay the dividend to the government,” he said.
Responding, Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timor) sarcastically asked if Wan Junaidi is qualified to speak on behalf of the prime minister.
Remaining unperturbed, the deputy speaker merely said that the motion is not urgent enough for debate.
At this juncture, other opposition parliamentarians stood up to argue about the decision, causing a stand-off that lasted almost 30 minutes. Wan Junaidi stuck to his decision.
Eventually, Lim said that Najib should be told to explain the situation in his winding-up speech, or at very least, issue a statement.
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