SHAH ALAM, July 15 — The state government under Pakatan Harapan spent up to RM2.37 billion last year on public welfare programmes, said Selangor Harapan chairman Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
This amount also refutes allegations by certain quarters that the state government has spent less, in spite of recording high reserves.
He said the expenditure for the people’s welfare increased by over RM1 billion compared to the previous administration, which allocated only RM1.3 billion.
“This shows a difference of RM1 billion in expenditure which was utilised by the Harapan administration during the 14th term (of the State Legislative Assembly), for the well-being and welfare of the people.
“This proves that we are not reducing but rather increasing spending for the people, whether in terms of the quality of contributions such as the Bingkas initiative, let alone the total number of programmes, which now stands at 46,” Amirudin said in a TikTok video.
Previously, former menteri besar Datuk Seri Azmin Ali claimed that Selangor’s reserves did not increase under Amirudin, adding the reserves were instead used for development expenditures during his tenure from 2014 to 2018.
Amirudin, who is also the Menteri Besar, said the stated amount does not include expenditure during the Covid-19 pandemic and the major floods that affected Selangor at the end of 2021.
The state government launched five stimulus packages during the pandemic, altogether exceeding RM1 billion, in addition to over RM100 million in allocations to help the flood victims.
“So it is patently false that we are not spending. The issue is how we spend the funds prudently, transparently, and without leakage and wastage.
“As a result, the reserves have increased, our expenditure for the people continues to increase, and the people continue to live in comfort,” he said.
On June 27, the Department of Statistics Malaysia released data showing that Selangor’s contribution to the national Gross Domestic Product increased to 25.5 per cent in 2022, surpassing the previous year’s record of 24.8 per cent.
The state’s economic growth also increased by 11.9 per cent, which exceeded the national growth rate of 8.7 per cent last year.
Under Amirudin’s leadership over the past five years, Selangor has achieved economic growth with increased state revenue, reserves, and household income, while maintaining a controlled unemployment rate.
