Wrong, dishonest to say PH’s 22 months a failure, says Guan Eng

 

Former finance minister Lim Guan Eng said other administrations had gained from the policies introduced by PH but had not improved on those policies.

PETALING JAYA: Claims that Pakatan Harapan (PH) failed in its 22 months in power are false and dishonest, says DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.

Lim, the former finance minister, cited the reduction of toll rates on the North-South Expressway, reforms in procurement, abolition of the goods and services tax (GST), and the provision of assistance for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as among the coalition’s successes.

In an interview with FMT, Lim said: “There were many things that we did. We had open tenders and the savings that we have secured. We were also able to make sure that Malaysia’s fiscal and financial situation did not become worse. We were (also) able to bring up charges against those involved in 1MDB, the court cluster. We abolished GST.”

Lim said subsequent administrations had benefited from the policies introduced by PH but had never improved upon those policies.

“Instead, they wanted to impose a tax on incomes, earnings, profits (made) overseas that are brought back to Malaysia. And that hits Johoreans very hard because many are working in Singapore, and many companies are making profits in Singapore. When they bring back the money they will be taxed.”

He said he believes that political considerations were behind the government’s decision to provide an exemption until 2026 on individual income earned overseas.

“So we want the voters to be warned, if you support the present government, they will tax you, especially if you are working in Singapore in the future.”

Elaborating on the recent Sarawak elections, Lim said the opposition’s votes had been split, giving the advantage to Barisan Nasional and Gabungan Parti Sarawak.

“The other aspect was the lower turnout. If there was a higher turnout of voters, I think we would have won more than double the numbers we have secured.

“We have to examine why there was a lower turnout. We do not deny there was some unhappiness at what happened.”

He said there was also a sense of futility among voters as elected representatives could jump ship without being punished or penalised, which was why an anti-hopping law was crucial. - FMT