KUALA LUMPUR: The distribution of New Straits Times Press (NSTP) newspapers in the Dewan Rakyat encourages the habit of reading among members of Parliament, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He praised the NSTP for such efforts, placing all three newspapers under the brand - the New Straits Times, Berita Harian and Harian Metro - around Parliament.
"Thank you (for the newspaper). Yes, this is (a) good (effort), it encourages the habit of reading," he said briefly.
In total, 300 copies of the three titles had been placed in the Dewan Rakyat, including at the main lobby, the members of Parliament lounge, and the Senators lounge.
The NSTP had started placing the newspapers since yesterday (Nov 28) and will continue to do so until Dec 14, on the last day of the Dewan Negara sitting.
Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan, meanwhile, was already a subscriber of both NST and Berita Harian e-papers.
"Every night, at 12.05am, I will read both these papers digitally. I go through every page, and read at least the headlines.
"Having papers in Parliament is a good step to encourage reading. In the lounges we have Tamil, Chinese, English and Bahasa Malaysia papers, but only one copy of each.
"It's better like this, when there are many (copies)."
Another member of Parliament Yuneswaran Ramaraj said a newspaper was a formal way of receiving information.
The Pakatan Harapan lawmaker for Segamat said it had been a while since he was able to get his hands on a physical copy.
"This is good, because newspapers are 'formal information'. It promotes the habit of reading, instead of (getting information) from (social media platforms) TikTok, Facebook, or others," he added.