MoU On Opposition Allocation Still Open For Negotiation - Ahmad Zahid

SHAH ALAM, Sept 15 (Bernama) -- The government is open to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Opposition Allocation being re-negotiated, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

However, he said, it would not veer from the original conditions contained in the draft MoU that was presented to Perikatan Nasional (PN) previously.

He said the draft had been drawn up with the content and some conditions according to what the government thought suitable and submitted to the PN for discussion with their Members of Parliament.

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"That is up to them. The government has presented the draft and if they want to accept it, accept it unconditionally, or perhaps details can be discussed in terms of consultation.

"If they don't accept, we will just forget about it,” he told reporters after officiating the launch of the 78th MIC Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the Ideal Convention Centre (IDCC) here today.

The media reported today that the opposition unanimously rejected the MoU for four fundamental reasons, alleging that it contradicts the Federal Constitution and that some conditions in the MoU could potentially affect the special rights of Malays and Bumiputeras.

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Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, who led the negotiations on behalf of the government, was reported to have said that, so far, the government is still waiting for an official letter from the opposition regarding its reported rejection.

“We will discuss it further, whether we want to continue negotiations or if this is a final decision from the opposition that they no longer wish to negotiate,” said Fadillah.

-- BERNAMA