EDITOR'S PICK UPDATED VIDEOS INSERTED PETALING JAYA - Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim warned Prime Minister Najib Razak not to rush into signing the US-mooted Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement just to please President Barack Obama when the latter visits Malaysia in October.
"I think plainly so. Malaysia is the last of the senior ASEAN countries that has not been visited yet by the US president. So Malaysia has been appealing to the various administrations to visit," Anwar replied when asked at a Monday press conference if there was a possibility the Najib administration would confirm Malaysia's agreement to be a party to the TPPA during Obama's visit.
"And our concern is because of the desire of the Najib administration in wanting Obama to come, this will be further leverage for the US administration to put pressure on Malaysia. Now, this TPPA is the initiative of the Obama administration and therefore it is critical for President Obama. We recognize the interest he has on behalf of the US, but we have to protect our own interest. So whilst we welcome the visit, we will not allow the visit to be used as a leverage and pressure to impose on Malaysia an agreement that would not benefit the country and the economy."
Anwar also warned the 60-year-old Najib that bending over backwards to please Obama could damage Malaysia's reputation and give it a negative image of being a lackey or stooge of the United States. Such an unnecessary situation could win the disrespect of the Muslim world, which is an important consideration for predominantly Muslim Malaysia.
"To be perceived to be too close if not a lackey of the US. The major economies including those extremely close to the US have not entered into this negotiation - South Korea,Indonesia Taiwan. Thailand has rejected now. China a major world economy and close to the region but has not entered (been invited by the US) into this negotiation. That is also a major issue that we have raised, why we insist that these negotiations cannot continue in the light of these reservations expressed."
At first glance a "godsend", but may promote US agenda to the extent M'sia loses its sovereignty
Anwar was speaking at a joint press conference with Nurul Izzah, the MP for Lembah Pantai, and Wong Chen, the MP for Kelana Jaya.
Nurul too expressed her concern, urging Najib to review his push for the TPPA which she reiterated was not a godsend. She warned against sacrificing the nation's long-term interest for the sake of short-term gains including getting into the good books of the US and Obama.
"I think this is Najib's baby. He thinks this is part of his transformation agenda starting with the liberalization of the 27 trade subsectors when he first came in and the problem is I don't he realizes the full impact. We don't want a situation where just because Obama is visiting just because US has invested so much we are forced to agree. That is the wrong approach to take, he (Najib) thinks this will put a stamp on his liberal transformation image ... but it (the impact) will be horrendous," said Nurul.
Nurul also gave an example of how the TPPA could expose the Malaysian government and its firms to major lawsuits from US giants.
"We, YB Wong Chen, YB Charles Santiago and YB Xavier Jeyakumar attended the caucus with (Trade Minister) Mustapa Mohamad about 2 days before Hari Raya last Tuesday but while we appreciate the engagement, clearly there were so many areas of concern that cannot be resolved that do not benefit Malaysia. As parties that support free and fair trade, we were extremely alarmed. We have other agreements, we have the China, ASEAN FTA, we have 6 ongoing bilateral and regional FTAs and we are doing well as a trading nation.
"We are a developing nation and we must know what we are up against,the industrialized nations and we must know how to best to protect our interest. But right now, my message is Prime Minister Najib must put a stop to this negotiation because of the impact we will all suffer post signing. (For example) this company (US-based) Estee Lauder is suing Canada because of its future profits that may be lost because Canada withheld support and approval for its patents. I am not going to allow Malaysia to be subservient and at the mercy of such suits. It's crazy, how will we survive millions of dollars wiped out from our country."
Not a conventional FTA, but will have a direct impact on legal, judicial, economic & democratic structures
The TPPA is currently being negotiated between 12 nations in the Asia-Pacific region. Together, these countries have a combined GDP worth of more than US$33 trillion at the end of 2012.
Anwar pointed out that the TPPA was more than just a conventional FTA. According to him, the TPPA not only seeks to regulate market access for good services but will also affect the way a country does business due to "cross-cutting horizontal issues.
"The TPPA has a direct impact on our legal and judicial system, economic structures and democratic institutions. Our national interest and sovereignty therefore is at stake. PKR view the TPPA as an attempt by the US to impose its brand of economic model of free market, laisses-faire approach, de-regulation and small government," said Anwar, who is also the adviser for the PKR or People's Justice Party.
"The glaring absence of China, South Korea, Taiwan and Indonesia in the TPPA lends credence to this belief that it promotes primarily US economic, business and geopolitical interest."
"While some degree of confidentiality is not unexpected in any negotiation, the extent of secrecy and clandestinity in the TPPA is extremely worrying and disconcerting."
"In the absence of a full public disclosure of a comprehensive and thorough Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) undertaken by the Malaysian government, we should take with a pinch of salt an assessment as a result of a study conducted in 2012 by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the Washington DC-based think tank that Malaysia would be among the biggest winners under the TPPA with gains of up to RM41.7 billion in exports and RM26.3 billion in gross national income per annum by 2025.
"Keadilan (Anwar's party) holds the position that we should reject the TPPA outright until and unless a comprehensive and impartial CBA and comparative advantage study are conducted whose results are extensively communicated to the public, TPPA's key points are made available to all stakeholders especially our members of Parliament, and the final agreement (when the entire text is disclosed) is duly ratified by our respective legislature."
Malaysia Chronicle
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