KEPONG MP Lim Lip Eng has questioned the logic of Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz’s statement that his ministry is looking to create 500,000 new job opportunities.

He said the announcement of half a million job opportunities by the minister raises many questions especially when the ministry has yet to deliver its promise on the 150,000 laptops to poor and needy students.

“The obvious question that is playing in the minds of the people now is whether the statement makes sense or is it just nonsense?” Lim asked in a statement.

Yesterday, Tengku Zafrul said his ministry aimed to create 500,000 new job opportunities with the setting up of the National Employment Council as well as systemic efforts under the “Jaminan Penjanaan Pekerjaan” (JanaKerja) scheme.

The JanaKerja scheme is expected to create 250,000 job opportunities, reskilling and upskilling programmes will have 200,000, and the MyStep scheme will add another 50,000 job opportunities.

Lim said several questions need to be answered by the ministry, such as the type of jobs that will be offered through the scheme, how will jobs be secured by the government considering the effects of the pandemic on many businesses, and lastly, when will the full figures related to the job opportunities be made available to the general public.

“Besides, will half a million of these jobs be offered through government agencies? Are there job opportunities for those who do not have a high standard of education?” he added.

Lim said considering Parliament has not yet been allowed to sit, the public has to ask these pertinent questions through the media.

“Again, 500,000 job opportunities is not a small number and to this day there are still many more people out there struggling to find the right job for themselves,” he said.

“Forget 500,000. If Tengku Zafrul can create 500 job opportunities for Kepong residents before the emergency period ends on August 1, I will gladly find suitable candidates for the jobs offered,” the lawmaker said.

During the Budget 2021 announcement on November 6 last year, Tengku Zafrul announced a RM150 million allocation to purchase 150,000 laptops for students in 500 schools nationwide under its Cerdik scheme.

The money for the programme was pooled together by government-linked companies and related investment firms that contributed to the Cerdik Fund.

The laptops were supposed to be distributed last month but there has been no sign of them. – March 8, 2021.