KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Harapan is leaving the door open on how its MPs will vote on the Budget 2022 when it comes up for final vote on Dec 13.

       "The presidential council has decided to continue discussions with the government (on the Budget).

       "Any decisions on the approval of Budget 2022 at the committee stage will be decided later," Pakatan said in a statement on Thursday (Nov 18).

       The statement comes after its MPs decided to allow the Budget to be passed at the policy stage on Thursday (Nov 18) by way of a voice vote.

       While there were some points approved by Pakatan, there

       were also matters which they did not agree on.

       "As such, at the policy stage, it was decided to have a voice vote in view of the disagreement on several matters on the Budget," it said.

       Pakatan said it would continue to engage with the government on the Budget to ensure equitable distribution of allocation for the rakyat.

       Pakatan added that it would also push for increased budget allocations for Sabah and Sarawak including Malaysians who were in need due to Covid-19 pandemic.

       Earlier on Thursday (Nov 18), the Budget was passed at the policy stage through a voice vote.

       Several Opposition MPs from Parti Warisan Sabah, who were not part of the Pakatan coalition, had requested Speaker Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun for a bloc vote.

       However, there were insufficient numbers of MPs required for a bloc vote to be held.

       A total of 15 MPs were required to call for a bloc vote where votes cast by MPs in the House were tallied.

       A voice vote is when members of the House call out "Setuju" (Aye) or "Tidak" (No) when a Bill is put to vote.

       Debates on the Budget at the committee stage resumes this Monday (Nov 22) with final voting on the Budget on Dec 13.