‘It’s only 20 sen, lah’

Having depleted the nation's coffers prior to May 5, 2013, the petrol price hike is a way for the government to take back what it freely doled out to the rakyat.

COMMENT

The recent 20 sen hike in the price of RON95 petrol was put forward by BN leaders as a necessary move that is good for the nation’s economy and also good for the pockets of the poor because the hike would enable the poor to get more cash aid via BR1M.

However, this merely goes to show that the government is taking from the citizens only to give it back to them.

In fact, the government is taking the money from a low-wage earner who rides a motorbike to his workplace only to give it back to him because he is also eligible for BR1M. Is this some sort of a cruel joke?

Simply put, the increase in the petrol price is due to the government spending too much prior to May 5, 2013 and their spending has depleted the nation’s coffers. Therefore they have to top it up again.

Thus the government spends money to woo your vote and after that you have to pay for being wooed – this is diabolical irony indeed.

In the age of the internet, urban folk will not be so easily taken in by the silly reasons given for the increase. Since the hike on Tuesday, Sept 3, this columnist has interviewed 100 urban folk pertaining to the hike. Responses from the rakyat are summed up below:

1 BN supporters (six persons): “Only 20 sen, lah. What’s the fuss? Moreover it is good for the nation. Why grumble? Where is your patriotism?”

2 General public (not belonging to any political party, neutral, 77 persons): “Prices of foodstuffs and other consumer goods will go up fast not to mention public transport fares. Before the 13th general election, the PM said that he will consider the people’s well-being and perhaps that is the reason why it is a 20 sen, not 30 sen increase or more. What to do now? Just try to cope until the next general election, lah. We have got no choice but the government must also be thrifty to set a good example. They cannot expect us to be thrifty while they continue to be spendthrift.”

3 Pakatan Rakyat supporters (17 persons): We knew that this would happen and we already warned the rakyat about this during the GE13 campaign but we were accused of lying about BN in order to garner votes. Now die, lah. The worst is that we too have to suffer because of the minority’s stupidity. What a confounded situation. Damn!

Najib out of tune

The classic quote came from a factory worker: “When the price of vegetables went up, the BN minister told us to grow our own vegetables. When the price of chicken went up, the minister suggested that we do not eat chicken. Now that the price of petrol has gone up, is he going to tell us to pour water into the petrol tank?”

What irks the general population concerning the petrol hike is that while the government is telling us to be thrifty, they themselves are living a lavish lifestyle.

Have they forgotten about the slogan of ‘Leadership by example’? Or is it just a case of ‘We are the government so the rakyat must shut up and do as they are told’?

Year in, year out, the Auditor-General’s Report reveals wastages, leakages and mismanagement that has taken place and still continues to occur. And due to this wanton wastage, the citizens have to bear the effects of the government’s irresponsible ways.

That is the reason for the slogan of ‘People First’ – it is the people who suffer first when there are any cutbacks which of course will only affect the ordinary rakyat. The elite and their cronies will continue their opulent lifestyle unaffected.

Khalid Samad, the Shah Alam MP from PAS remarked that “the government says ‘the increase is only 20 sen a liter’ but who ever buys only a liter of petrol? The cost of transportation will go up and be passed on to the consumers. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) will rise and so will the inflation rate. The price of RON95 must not be increased anymore as our petrol price is the highest among the oil-producing nations.”

A pro-government man once said that the price of goods should only go up by 0.01% due to the petrol hike but will the price of a cup of kopi-o in the Chinese coffee-shop be increased from RM1.40 to RM1.41?

Khalid is also of the view that pertaining to the GST (Goods & Services Tax), the government should implement zero tax for daily necessities and the GST rate should start at 4% as proposed before the 13th general election and not 7% as announced after GE13. This said 4% rate should remain for at least five years.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak should show his sincerity in caring for the rakyat. After all, he has said that he is always in tune with the pulse of the nation and he always takes the views of the rakyat into consideration.

Everyone is thus hoping that Budget 2014 will be a budget that cares for the rakyat.

Selena Tay is a DAP member and a FMT columnist.