Guan Eng moots two ways for Putrajaya to abolish GST

The goods and services tax (GST) can be abolished if the federal government was clean and practiced an open tender system for projects, said Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

"Ten years ago, The Star reported that if we have open tender and a clean government, we could save RM27 billion a year," Lim told a press conference today.

He added that GST should be abolished because Putrajaya was already saving money by removing various government subsidies."We save RM20 billion from subsidy cuts. This RM20 billion pays for Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia (BR1M)," he said.

Lim was responding to Finance Minister II Johari Abdul Ghani who told Parliament yesterday that the GST had to be continued because of Petronas' declining contributions to the national coffer.

Johari explained that GST and removal of government subsidies were necessary to prevent the budget deficit from increasing, following a drop in crude oil revenue - from RM66 billion in 2014 to RM30 billion in 2016.

The minister said his in reply to a question from Lim on whether the GST should be abolished since crude oil price was now on the rise.- Mkini