A day after former prime minister Najib Razak questioned the need to tap into KWAN, several others have joined the chorus of criticism.

Najib pointed out that Putrajaya had previously said the RM3 billion was sufficient to vaccinate 83% of Malaysians and there was no reason to seek more funds.

Muhammed Abdul Khalid, who was former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s economic adviser, said today he was shocked that the Perikatan Nasional-led government had resorted to tap into KWAN when it could easily raise funds from other sources.

“KWAN is similar to Norway’s oil fund, which is meant for future generations. Even in times of crises, such as the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis or the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, the government did not touch the fund.”

He said Putrajaya was being irresponsible by using KWAN money for vaccines when it had already allocated RM3 billion under the 2021 budget and an additional RM2 billion in March.

“The public has a right to know why the government needs even more money for vaccines and how much will be taken from KWAN,” he said.

Former finance minister Lim Guan Eng also said there were better alternatives to raiding KWAN,  including raising funds through bonds.

He said that even if the government were to raise an additional RM20 billion, it would only increase the 2021 deficit-to-GDP ratio by only 1%.

“Based on the 2021 Budget, the government projected the deficit ratio would drop to 5.4% of GDP from 6.2% in 2020. The government can afford the minor budget deficit increase during these difficult times and will not be punished by the markets.”

Klang MP Charles Santiago also said the government must explain why the billions allocated for the vaccine programme were insufficient.

“Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin must be open, accountable and transparent in the way funds were used and allow for public scrutiny.

“The use of KWAN would compromise investments and push foreign investors to have little faith and confidence in the way we manage finances,” he said in a statement.

Santiago said it was worrying that the government could arbitrarily use up the RM16 billion available in the fund before the emergency ends.

Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii, meanwhile, urged the government to reconvene Parliament and allow the parliamentary select committees to function to ensure there is transparency over the plans to tap into KWAN.

“The usage of such funds must go through approval and scrutiny in Parliament so that this money that is for the people is really being spent prudently and efficiently.”

He said the fact that the government had to tap into KWAN highlights its failure in managing the Covid-19 crisis.