Replying Mustapha's 'lazy' vilification of Harapan budget

If he cannot be bothered to read the entire budget, he should at least read our section 2.2.2 aptly titled 'Can we afford to eliminate GST?'

International Trade and Industry Minister (MITI) Mustapha Mohamed is a capable albeit bland technocrat. We worked well together in the TPPA caucus, agreeing to disagree on many issues but always respectful in our dealings.

I am thus very surprised by the content of his press statement vilifying the Pakatan Harapan alternative budget without basis nor evidence.

On first glance, it is as if the statement was written by someone else and his name was added to it. I am sure that most of you are also asking the same question; why is the MITI minister commenting on our budget instead of the finance minister?

As head of the Pakatan Harapan budget committee, I am compelled to offer him this reply.

The Harapan budget is a 75-page document that describes a plethora of policies, projections and narratives. Yet the sole reasoning provided by Mustapha to vilify our budget rests on the question of our GST computation.

With regard to our plans to eliminate the GST, Mustapha said the following: “…instead of sharing with us their plans to compensate this drop in revenue, they are only relying on the questionable assumption that a tax cut will result in higher consumption and tax collection."

If Mustapha cannot be bothered to read the entire budget, he should at least read our section 2.2.2 aptly titled “Can we afford to eliminate GST?" on pages 14 to 15 of our budget, where we detailed our plans on how to compensate the drop in GST revenue. We even provided a table with computations. For some odd reason, Mustapha decided to ignore this and he chose to make a public statement that we had no such plans. This is plainly wrong.

As for his allegation that our consumption numbers are questionable, he failed to offer any counter-arguments or data to show what it should be. That is just plain lazy.

A senior minister with a veritable army of consultants and staff at his beck-and-call should at least provide some numbers in reply. Isn't it just hypocritical for a senior minister to allege that our fiscal numbers as irresponsible, while he lacked responsibility (failing to provide a proper evidence) in his response?

What is even more telling is this: Mustapha did not even acknowledge our proposal to offset 80 percent of the GST shortfall by eliminating RM20 billion from wastage and corruption.

Does he believe there is no wastage, corruption?

Why did Mustapha choose to completely ignore our anti-corruption plans? Could it be that he believes that there is no wastage and corruption in his government? Or could it be that he has totally given up all hopes of ever seeing a corruption-free Malaysia?

As for his allegations that we are spreading unsubstantiated claims to spoil Malaysia's reputation, he needs to wake up. Mustapha should know well as MITI minister what the 1MDB scandal has wreaked on this country's international reputation. He seems to stand with the rest of the Cabinet, pretending that it does not exist and affect Malaysia's international standing and position.

Lastly, he also claims that the prime minister will present a sound economic plan this Friday.

Being a senior minister, Mustapha must surely know that the tabling of the budget is not the prime minister's job, but that of the finance minister. More importantly, he should know better that basic good governance dictates that the same person cannot hold both posts. He has sadly conflated the two.

Overall, his statement is a weak and sorry attempt to vilify Harapan’s budget and is without substance.

However, it is notable that his statement is blustery and unusually rhetorical for a technocrat.

We can speculate that the language deployed suggests an internal conflict facing a capable man who has chosen to serve a person, whom the US Department of Justice deems to be a kleptocrat.

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WONG CHEN is PKR's investment and trade bureau chairperson. He is also the MP for Kelana Jaya.- Mkini