Party vice-president Kula Segaran suggests that money be spent on more progressive programmes.
FMT
GEORGE TOWN: DAP today urged the government to abolish the National Service (NS) programme and channel the money saved towards more progressive programmes.
M Kula Segaran, a vice-president of the party, said it would be cheaper and more productive for Putrajaya to “expand and enhance” the Students Integration Programme for Unity (RIMUP) that was launched in 1986 with the objective of building unity among students of different races.
He noted that since the NS programme was launched in 2004, the government had spent billions of ringgit to run it.
In May 2008, Deputy Defence Minister Abu Seman Yusop told Parliament that the government had spent RM608.6 million in 2004, RM604.8 million in 2005, RM588.2 million in 2006 and RM565 million in 2007 to run the NS programme.
Kula also noted that 22 participants had died in NS camps and that a former NS trainer was detained recently on suspicion of planning a new route to the Middle East for recruits to join the Islamic State militant group.
“Malaysians remain unconvinced by claims that the programme is worthwhile,” he said. “I therefore call on the government to cancel the NS programme altogether, rather than just suspending it for a year.”
The programme was mooted by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamed just before he retired in 2003. Kula said Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak should not be deterred by Mahathir’s current animosity towards him from “doing what is necessary”.
Najib yesterday announced that the NS programme would be suspended for a year as part of cost-cutting measures to face tough economic challenges. The suspension is estimated to save the federal government about RM400 million.
Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein disclosed that NS camp operators and trainers would receive their pay despite the the suspension.
Kula demanded disclosure of how much the operators would be paid and an explanation of why they would be paid.
He also asked why only RM400 million would be saved. If the 2015 budget for NS was RM600 million, he said, this meant that some RM200 million would still be spent.
GEORGE TOWN: DAP today urged the government to abolish the National Service (NS) programme and channel the money saved towards more progressive programmes.
M Kula Segaran, a vice-president of the party, said it would be cheaper and more productive for Putrajaya to “expand and enhance” the Students Integration Programme for Unity (RIMUP) that was launched in 1986 with the objective of building unity among students of different races.
He noted that since the NS programme was launched in 2004, the government had spent billions of ringgit to run it.
In May 2008, Deputy Defence Minister Abu Seman Yusop told Parliament that the government had spent RM608.6 million in 2004, RM604.8 million in 2005, RM588.2 million in 2006 and RM565 million in 2007 to run the NS programme.
Kula also noted that 22 participants had died in NS camps and that a former NS trainer was detained recently on suspicion of planning a new route to the Middle East for recruits to join the Islamic State militant group.
“Malaysians remain unconvinced by claims that the programme is worthwhile,” he said. “I therefore call on the government to cancel the NS programme altogether, rather than just suspending it for a year.”
The programme was mooted by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamed just before he retired in 2003. Kula said Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak should not be deterred by Mahathir’s current animosity towards him from “doing what is necessary”.
Najib yesterday announced that the NS programme would be suspended for a year as part of cost-cutting measures to face tough economic challenges. The suspension is estimated to save the federal government about RM400 million.
Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein disclosed that NS camp operators and trainers would receive their pay despite the the suspension.
Kula demanded disclosure of how much the operators would be paid and an explanation of why they would be paid.
He also asked why only RM400 million would be saved. If the 2015 budget for NS was RM600 million, he said, this meant that some RM200 million would still be spent.
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