Pakatan Harapan common policy to address Malay-centric concerns
(The Star) – Pakatan Harapan’s new common policy will have some “radical” changes, among them the addressing of Malay-centric concerns.
The new policy will revisit and strengthen some previous common policy principles employed by Pakatan Rakyat such as democratic concepts, human rights and good governance, said Pakatan Harapan secretary-general Saifuddin Abdullah at a press conference with coalition members at DAP headquarters on Monday.
“But we will be launching some more radical, more specific policies that are important for the people,” he said.
PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli (pic) gave a preview of what some of the more “radical” policies expected, including approaches to resolve issues concerning welfare and the social-economic situation of Malay voters.
“We will attempt to be direct, creative and objective about our policies, approaches and programmes to address those concerns of Malay insecurity or issues,” he said, adding that these tended to paint Pakatan Harapan in a bad light.
Another issue was concerns about the national economic situation such as rising costs, national labour policy, youth unemployment and the reliance on foreign workers.
The third aspect will be on building a comprehensive and inclusive education system, said Rafizi.
The press conference was attended by leaders from PKR, DAP and Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah).
Despite it being “radical”, Amanah information chief Khalid Samad said that the policies would still be within the constraints of the Federal Constitution.
The full common policy framework will be published during the Pakatan Harapan Convention on July 16. Additional details concerning the three areas of focus will be announced on a monthly basis from April onwards, after the Sarawak elections.
Details of the common policy framework will be revealed in stages leading up to July in order to allow the public time to understand the policies and for discourse to be held with stakeholders, Rafizi said.
However, Rafizi clarified that the focus on Malay-centric issues would not be at the cost of other races.
“The issues that we are discussing are for all Malaysians.
“That doesn’t mean that when there is that improvement to Malay voters, we are neglecting other races or the stance of other parties in Pakatan Harapan,” said Rafizi.
