Illicit outflows due to tax evaders and ‘units’ holders?

YOURSAY | ‘We know where illicit money is flowing out from, but where is it going?’

Malaysia again No 5 in highest illicit outflows

Vijay47: Not that we will ever know but it would be interesting and far from surprising to find out who the principal people are for this flight of funds.

I would imagine that in ascending order, the three top places would be held, first, by tax evaders and others engaged in traditional illegal activities.

Second, would be those who have given up hope in Malaysia and believe that their money and future would be more secure anywhere outside this country.

The champion and by far the biggest exporter of money would be ruling party leaders who would also be motivated by reason two and the belief that keeping evidence at some distance would ensure that no one could really nail them. And they need not even hold their overseas funds in units.

SteveOh: We know where illicit money is flowing out from, but where is it flowing into?

It is time those countries like Australia, Singapore, UK, etc, investigate dubious deals and confiscate money from corruption, as illicit money often flows into those countries. In Australia, the police confiscate the proceeds of crime.

Hplooi: Even if as much as 50 percent of these illicit outflow can be stopped, Malaysia would not need to suffer such massive ringgit devaluation - leading to the current (imported) cost of inflation.

And we hold Umno and the whole coterie of BN parties responsible for this crime against the Malaysian people.

Justice Fairness: The fraudulent misinvoicing of trade transactions was revealed to be the largest component of illicit financial flows from developing countries, accounting for 83.4 percent of all illicit flows.

That is why the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is needed to self-monitor prices as well as reduce our tax differences between us and Singapore.

It used to be 28 percent corporate tax in Malaysia and 17 percent in Singapore. With the implementation of GST this year, our tax rate is 24 percent vs Singapore’s 17 percent.

No prizes for guessing why our profits keep going to Singapore for tax reduction reasons.

Patriot of Malaysia: What all these so-called ‘online media’ which tells the facts fail to say is that Malaysia also ranks in the top five for immigrants who send billions home to their countries like Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Millions of migrants sending out money home. Indonesia and Philippines actually took it as a good thing to get their foreign exchange dollars from these migrants.

Pisasu 7: But our dear PM brought RM2.6 billion home. Give credit where credit is due, Patriot of Malaysia.

Air Supply: From top politicians to bottom legal immigrants, all send out the money to other countries.

Malaysia has a population of 30 million but still can compete with China that has 1.2 billion people. Malaysia boleh.

Jonah2: Just look at the countries above us - India, China, Mexico, Russia - all have allegedly dishonest governments.

Indeed, how to keep your money in this country? Banks can take a garnishing order or get a judgment in default and there goes your money. And Umno plays havoc with the economy which can turn your money to rupiah overnight.

The logical thing to do is to move your money to safe havens, and that definitely does not include Malaysia.

Lamborghini: With the serious brain drain coupled with massive illicit outflows, Malaysia is surely sliding into a Third World country at best, and at worst, a bankrupt country if there is no political will to stem and overcome these two very serious challenges.

Wg321: The capital drain is worse than the brain drain. The capital drain is mostly from those associated with the government sector as a result of corruption, etc, whereas the brain drain is mostly due to racial discrimination because highly skilled people are not wanted by the government.

The government only welcome unskilled manual workers such as the 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers who will soon be coming here, in addition to millions of other unskilled legal and illegal workers in this country.

With China helping in infrastructure development - roads, railways, ports, power plants, dams, Shenzhen-like Free Trade Zones, etc - African countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, South Africa, Angola, Rwanda, Zambia, etc, will overtake Malaysia very soon.

Foreign direct investments (FDIs) will not only flow into Africa but also Central Asian countries like Kazakhstan when China finished building its ‘Iron Silk Road’ connecting it to Europe by 2020, while Malaysia is still busy practising ‘ketuanan Melayu’.

Joe Lee: In a country where the home minister (now DPM) would write a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to vouch for his mate, alleged gambling kingpin Paul Phua, is it any surprise that Malaysia is one of the champions of illicit financial flows?

Not to mention, all the alleged seriously illegitimate dealings of 1MDB.

I wonder why we in fact do not choose to be a crime haven for all the crooks of the world. With the leaders running the country, it would be to our competitive advantage if we did so.

From Penang: I have always doubted how we can be in the top five in highest illicit outflows. No more doubt now after knowing about the 2Bs - 1MDB and RM2.6B. -Mkini