By Amar Shah Mohsen
SHAH ALAM, Nov 22 — The opposition’s claims that the state government under Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari’s leadership has failed to properly manage the budget and economy are erroneous, the Menteri Besar said today, citing data.
Addressing the Selangor State Legislative Assembly, Amirudin pointed out that his administration has consistently surpassed its annual revenue target, as opposed to when his predecessor and current opposition leader Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali was overseeing the state.
He noted that last year, the state government collected about RM2.7 billion in revenue, a 35 per cent increase from its initial target of RM2 billion. The state has also exceeded this year’s RM2.2 billion target by October.
“Hulu Kelang (Azmin) mentioned his budget in 2018, which targeted RM2.25 billion in revenue. I only took over in June, but that was the first time the state only achieved 88 per cent of its target. We only collected RM1.9 billion,” he said in his wind-up speech for the 2025 Selangor State Budget at the assembly here today.
Amirudin also highlighted that Selangor’s economy has grown significantly since he helmed the administration, recording a RM41 billion growth in 2022 compared to the previous year, thanks to various policies and programmes implemented.
In contrast, Azmin’s administration recorded an economic growth of RM21 billion in 2017, he said.
[caption id="attachment_379905" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
The Selangor State Legislative Assembly in session during the tabling of the 2025 Selangor Budget by Menteri Besar Dato' Seri Amirudin Shari, in Shah Alam on November 15, 2024. — Picture by AHMAD ZAKKI JILAN/MEDIA SELANGOR[/caption]
Amirudin was responding to claims by opposition lawmakers during their debates earlier this week that the fact the state needed to request for a supplementary budget showed that the government has failed in its budget implementation.
In today’s proceedings, Azmin also questioned the state’s reserves, which he said has not seen any significant increase over the past eight to 10 years.
He noted that today, the state only has about RM4 billion in reserves compared to about RM3.62 billion in 2016, despite inflation.
In response, Amirudin said when he took over the administration in 2018, Selangor’s reserves stood at RM2.1 billion, while its revenue collection was also one of the lowest in recent years.
Despite recent achievements, the Menteri Besar said his administration is continuously looking at ways to increase revenue, including via contributions by state subsidiaries and the implementation of the Zero Discharge Policy (ZDP).
This is after state Perikatan Nasional lawmakers accused the government of only relying on land-related transactions for revenue.
“This year, we aim to collect RM40 million from state agencies. We will also get revenue from the ZDP. Doesn’t the government do anything to increase revenue? Of course we have.
“That’s why when questions were raised on our strategies to increase revenue so as not to rely on land, I explained them. During your (Azmin) time, there weren't any specific measures, so I learned and improved.”
