FEDERAL Territories Minister Shahidan Kassim’s decision to declare tomorrow a public holiday is politically irresponsible, said Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming.

He said the sudden declaration – made after Kuala Lumpur City F.C. won in the Malaysia Cup – will disrupt the economy and social life in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan.

The unexpected public holiday will cost companies millions in unplanned output losses, he added.

“As much as 90% of the RM216 billion gross domestic product output is in the services sector in Kuala Lumpur.

“The capital is the heartbeat of the financial services sector in the country and home to operational headquarters of accounting and tax consultants and multinational companies, which may have to pay for unplanned overtime to ensure core services remain up and running during the public holiday.”

Ong said the public holiday may cause up to RM400 million in lost output, something that the country cannot afford when it is still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bookings for conferences and training sessions may have to be postponed, face-to-face meetings may have to be cancelled and traffic at shopping malls in the capital may drop, affecting shops that depend on office workers as customers, he added.

“Businesses that conduct transactions with government offices in Putrajaya will also experience a delay, which will result in lost time and productivity.”

“This unplanned public holiday is also socially disruptive. There may be parents who live in Kuala Lumpur and send their kids to school in Kuala Lumpur, but work in Selangor. They will now have to make last-minute arrangements for their kids who do not have to go to school.”

The DAP lawmaker said those with court appointments at the Kuala Lumpur High Court tomorrow will have their sessions rescheduled, creating a cascading effect leading to other sessions delayed and postponed.

He questioned whether Shahidan had thought about these economic and social disruptions before making the announcement yesterday.

“It is not as if Malaysia had won its first Olympic gold or achieved something historic at an international sporting event.

“Will this act by the minister set an unhealthy precedent for chief ministers and menteri besar of other states to declare an unplanned state holiday when their respective teams win the Malaysia Cup?

“This populist move makes me wonder if the minister has any idea on how to showcase the policy changes he wants to bring about to make the capital city into a world-class city under his watch as Federal Territories minister.”

KL City F.C defeated the Southern Tigers (Johor Darul Ta’zim F.C.) 2-0 yesterday, in its first victory in 32 years in Malaysia Cup. It last won the trophy in 1989. – December 2, 2021.