Lim Kit Siang challenged Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today to return his salaries and allowances earned as a federal minister since the deputy prime minister had declared that Muslims did not want to be associated with gambling money.
The DAP man said the DPM should return the money because part of government revenue was sourced from gaming taxes.
Muhyiddin’s comment came after Umno’s Youth’s allegations that the DAP Penang state government had funded its poverty eradication programmes from a “forbidden source”.
“In line with Muhyiddin’s declaration that Muslims do not want to be associated with money from ‘a forbidden source’, the deputy prime minister should set an example and declare that he will not only return his salary and allowances to Treasury, but will return all his salaries and allowances as Federal Minister for the past 15 years since 1995.
“Muhyiddin’s past Cabinet portfolios were Minister of Youth and Sports (1995 1999), Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (1999–2004), Minister of Agriculture (2004–2008) and Minister of International Trade and Industry (2008 2009) before becoming deputy prime minister and education minister in April 2009,” said the DAP veteran in a press statement.
Lim pointed out that in June, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had told Parliament that all government taxation and revenue was credited into a consolidated fund.
“At this time, revenue from gambling activities are categorised as government revenue. Based on Article 97 of the Federal Constitution and Financial Procedure Act 1957 (revised in 1972) all taxation or revenue received by the federal government will be credited into the Consolidated Fund.
“The Consolidated Fund comprises three main accounts, the Consolidated Account, the Consolidated Trust Account and the Consolidated Loans Account.
“All revenue from payment of taxes are put into the Consolidated Account like all other government revenue and is used for purposes of management spending and national development,” said Najib.
Lim stressed that Muhyiddin must be consistent and return his earnings because part of the government’s budget used for salaries and allowances are sourced from gambling revenue.
“As Muhyiddin said that Muslims do not want to be associated with money from ‘a forbidden source’, and part of the expenditure for national management and development including paying the salaries and allowances of Cabinet Ministers is sourced from gambling revenue, the Deputy Prime Minister must be consistent and return all his salaries and allowances as Cabinet Minister going back to 15 years to the Treasury,” he said.
Lim added that the deputy finance minister Senator Awang Adek had also disclosed in Parliament that the government had collected RM2.3 billion in gambling tax last year.
Lim said that Muhyiddin must instead act responsibly and advise Penang Umno from engaging in “political desperado” tactics.
“It is most unfortunate that instead of advising Penang Umno not to resort to irresponsible politicking, as falsely accusing the Penang government of using gambling money to pay RM100 annually to senior citizens in the state aged above 60 years, Muhyiddin acted in a most irresponsible manner in aiding and abetting Penang Umno’s ‘political desperado’ tactics,” he said.
Umno Youth had urged the Penang government to clarify a blogger’s accusation that it had been using funds from gambling sources to make compassionate payments to senior citizens.
Its information chief Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican asked Lim to explain the claim made in the blog Pisau.net, which alleged that the annual payments of RM100 to senior citizens and RM1,000 to their beneficiaries were being funded through gaming revenue.
Reezal also claimed the rumours had caused discomfort among some of the recipients of the money, especially those who were Muslims.
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