Four days after the price of petrol and diesel was raised by 20 cents a litre, Malaysians can look forward to more "goodies" from a clueless administration.
The 47% of the electorate who had voted for the ruling Umno/Bn coalition can now look forward to the Meredeka gift of GST (Goods and Service Tax) that is sure to be implemented post the Umno General Assembly in October.
Unfortunately, the 51% who had not voted for the ruling coalition must also suffer the misplaced faith of the 47% who did.
Serves us right!
Najib's logic for his administration increasing the price of petrol and diesel is that the savings from their reduction in subsidy will help reduce the fiscal deficit by some 3.3 billion Ringgit a year.
This is funny because in the next breath, he also said that the government was mindful of the burden of the increase on the poorer sections of the rakyat (who seem to constitute every body else except the rich and privileged including the ministers who don't need to pay for their transportation) and that his administration was looking to increase the quantum of the BR1M handouts to help cushion the pain.
Funny because if the logic or justification for the fuel price increase is to reduce the national fiscal deficit, the increase in the quantum of the BR1M handouts would in fact increase the fiscal deficit
Talk about being clueless!
If Najib is really concerned about the rakyat and about reducing fiscal deficit, he can't to better than removing the subsidy to the IPPs (Independent Power Producers) that sources estimate comes up to some 20 billion Ringgit annually.
After all, the IPPs aren't producing electricity that is needed.
Tenaga produces more than sufficient for the national grid..
What the IPPs are doing is producing excess capacity and they are doing it more inefficiently than the national electricity board does, but the latter is forced to purchase what it doesn't really need at twice or triple the cost per unit which has resulted in increasing tariffs that is further hurting the poor rakyat.
Najib can increase the quantum of the BR1M assistance and yet reduce fiscal deficit by some 16 billion Ringgit annually if his administration would just stop practising crony capitalism made the order of the day courtesy of Mahathirism.
What about eliminating corruption and corrupt practices that some sources have estimated easily cost the nation another 30 to 50 billion Ringgit annually?
What about reducing the bloated civil service and improving productivity?
How about not spending more than the nation can afford each year? Simply put, balancing the books.
We have been on perennial budget deficits for 16 years running and running up the sovereign debt.
How about prudent management and reducing wastage.
Of course, if Umno knew how to manage the economy we wouldn't have to talk about BR1M in the first place.
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