THE Selangor government tabled a 2018 budget targeted at low-income residents and solving infrastructure problems in its towns in the hopes of retaining power in what is expected to be a tough general election.

The state budget will increase funds for new and existing schemes to help working-class families deal with cost of living pressures which are the highest in the country.

These programmes include its popular medical card scheme, school bus fares for children of plantation workers, insurance for padi farmers, bonus for civil servants and food aid for low-income women.

The Pakatan Harapan-led government hopes that the large sums of aid will boost its chances in the 14th general election (GE14) as it faces both Barisan Nasional and former ally PAS – a situation which, analysts said, has historically benefitted BN.

In order to serve all its crucial voting blocs, the state government conducted opinion surveys among its six million residents to find out what were their top-most concerns, said an official in the Selangor Menteri Besar’s Office.

The surveys showed that residents wanted more aid to deal with the high cost of living in the state’s urban areas and better paying jobs, said the official who declined to be named.

These concerns dove-tailed with earlier findings by pollsters, such as Merdeka Center, which showed that cost of living, a weak economy and wages were top concerns among Malaysians.

“Selangor residents are the not different from other people in other states when it comes to their concerns,” said Ibrahim Suffian.

This explains why Selangor dedicated a significant chunk of the budget, some RM187 million, to programmes which can either boost incomes or ease expenses.

For instance, the state government has taken over the maintenance payments for all low- and medium-cost flats in the state.  It has also waived all assessment fees for 2018.

The scheme is part of the RM1.66 billion Selangor allocated in its budget to development expenditure, which is 53.2% of the RM3.12 billion of its total budget.

Selangor’s budget was tabled yesterday by Menteri Besar Mohamed Azmin Ali. PH parties, PKR, DAP and Amanah have 30 seats in the 56-seat legislature.

PAS, which until GE14 supports the PH government, has 12 seats while BN has 12 seats. There are two independent assemblymen.

The RM1.66 billion allocation is higher than Selangor’s 2017 development expenditure of RM1.65 billion.

The extra RM50 million, said former Selangor executive councillor Dr Xavier Jeyakumar, is to fund programmes, such as KISS, the new Kasih Ibu Smart Selangor scheme, which targets women earning below RM2,000 a month.

They will receive RM200 a month under KISS or the Smart Selangor Mother’s Love scheme, which they will only be able to spend on food and basic necessities.

Its popular “Peduli Sihat” medical card scheme is also getting an upgrade. The programme, which has benefitted 600,000 residents, allows low-income families to spend up to RM500 a year at private clinics in Selangor.

In 2018, parents will be able to use the card to get free pneumococcal vaccines for their children. Extra funds will also go towards a scheme for heart patients and those using the state’s subsidised dialysis service.

These healthcare programmes are expected to cost Selangor RM44.1 million next year.

Civil servants on the state budget will receive a month’s bonus at year-end and qualify for a special life insurance scheme.

The Rumahku Selangor affordable home programme will build 20,311 units by 2020 while its rent-and-own and first-time buyers’ programmes also got a RM115 million boost.

Another considerable chunk is earmarked for repairing and upgrading roads, and to projects to reduce floods, another perennial headache of urban residents, said Jeyakumar, who is also Sri Andalas assemblyman.

BN state lawmaker Mat Nadzari Ahmad Dahlan, however, rubbished the budget, saying that it benefitted a select few compared with the ruling coalition’s federal budget.

“Their allocations for village chiefs and officials, for instance, are small compared with ours. There are also no new development areas that were opened up,” said Mat Nadzari.

“They seemed to focus only on places which we had developed when we were in power,” said the Batang Kali assemblyman.

Although the generous allocations may go down well with Selangor’s voters, who are some of the most aware and educated in the country, PH parties still have to deal with a fractious opposition, said Merdeka Center’s Ibrahim.

“Selangor a has a larger pool of swing and independent-minded voters. It is a challenge to BN. But also the opposition because of their disunity.”

Multi-cornered contests in Selangor between PH parties, PAS and BN may dilute support for the opposition and hand victory to the BN, said Ibrahim. – November 4, 2017.