Funding a Man’s Ego
COMMENT: We are being buggered by our government everyday and made to bear the burden of their policy cock-ups, failures, sheer incompetence and blatant corruption. Our car national policy is one classic example. We know that our national car project, conceived by Tun Dr. Mahathir in the 1980s, is a failure, an outcome that was predicted by our economists (like Chee Peng Lim, K.S. Jomo, Edmund Terence Gomez et.al ) decades ago. Yet we continue to fund this failed project to this day. Why? Out of deference to Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad?
Time and time again, Proton had to be supported by taxpayers (although it is now privatised to Syed Mokhtar’s DRB Group). Its R&D programme is being funded by the Federal Government and the national car is insulated from foreign competition by high import duties, meaning that without this high tariff, Proton cannot compete and fund its own R&D. Do we know what R&D is being done at Proton?
Something has gone terribly wrong when we have to burden the Malaysian consumer with taxes and heavy excise duties of all kinds. Even our privatization policy is a one big mess. It is time for our government to take a hard nosed approach towards all GLCs, and their management should be told that if they failed to perform that the government would shut down their companies. Can you count how many times, Malaysia Airlines and Bank Bumiputra (before it was absorded by CIMB) had to bailed out by fresh funds from the Treasury? I can’t. –Din Merican
What I Think
Klang Valley toll rates are up, fuel prices will stay high, the road tax is here to stay, cars remain pricey, so what’s new, Malaysia? Fact is, toll rates will rise every three years or so, according to contract. But the ruling federal government delays it every time there is a general election, and use taxpayers’ money to compensate them. We can’t change the toll contracts and fuel prices are dictated by global prices, but the government can cut road and vehicle taxes. Why are we paying more in taxes when our wallet is already emptied by toll rates and fuel at market prices?
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