Don't share propaganda on national economy, minister tells Malaysians

Malaysians should not share or spread misinformation and propaganda that can damage confidence in the national economy, minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan said.

Rahman, who is a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, said such acts would be akin to directly sabotaging Malaysia’s economy.

“By all accounts, our government's transformation plan is proving successful, with good policies that are now showing strong results.

“All Malaysians should focus on such successes, as we navigate the uncertain global conditions at the moment,” he said in a statement on his Facebook account.

Rahman, who is also the BN strategic communications director, expressed confidence in Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s ability to steer the country through a challenging economy.

“I have no doubt that the prime minister and this government will continue to ensure that Malaysia continues to enjoy economic growth, prioritise the well-being of our citizens and continue to develop Malaysia as we progress to a high-income country status,” Rahman said.

The Kota Belud MP said this in response to a series of messages on social media that supposedly caused anxiety among some Malaysians over the state of the country’s economy.

Messages centred on government debt

He said many of the messages centred on Malaysia’s current government debt, which is at a debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio of 53.4 percent on June 30, 2016.

The ratio, he said, measured how much debt the government has, compared with the country’s overall GDP.

“Much of the anxiety and accusations are that our ratio is close to the 55 percent self-imposed limit set by the government and that if we breach this limit, Malaysia will be in trouble.

“Certain more irresponsible messages even allege Malaysia will be bankrupt if we breach this 55 percent level,” he said.

Rahman said Malaysia’s GDP had grown and as such, the country could afford to carry more debt.

He added that the current level is still not as high when compared with the period between 1980 and 1985, when the ratio increased from 44 percent to 103.4 percent.

“If we did not go bankrupt at 103.4 percent in 1985, then how are we going to be bankrupt at 55 percent?” he said.

However, Rahman stressed that the BN government has no intention of breaching the 55 percent limit and would continue to manage its finances responsibly. - Mkini