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kengkawan sekalian...

let us think for a while..if the RM4.4 billion is used to improve public transport. let's say they bought new buses..new and better..more comfy...do you think the fare will be cheap?

Morning Jeff!

Any mainstream papers reported the protest?

First they can't print cartoons ... now I guess they can't print this (the protest) either.

P/S: Is Google down?

what 4.4 bil savings? the 4.4 bil that comes from the govt is the people's money anyway. the increase in subsidy only means "take 4.4 bil more from the rakyat"

improve public transport? come on...we have learnt that promises and reality can be indeed very different. and even if the public transport becomes better, it doesn't mean it is free and likely the price of tickets will increase as well.

means : more money to companies, less for you and me

^ sorry....decrease in subsidy ^_^

Oh, another thing:-

Public transport = MAS ??

Joe Public:-

I cup of teh ais is previously RM1.00.

Since it uses sugar (up 3.4%), milk (up 5.1%), ice (up 4.6%) and tea leaves (up 3.5%?) , so it would be deemed reasonable to increase the price by 16.6% ?!

Increase in transportation charges still not factored in.

Mas need 4 billion??? what the hell for? might as well give the 4 billion to Air Asia, at least it is for affordable to the most Malaysian...

Let Mas die better, then let it be bought over by Air Asia for RM1, much better than pouring RM 4 billion into it. It will be like pouring water into sand.

What is the guarantee that those idiots won't go spend 90% of the money on some painting drawn by their relatives..

Tajuddin Ramli must be thanking his lucky stars for able to get out from MAS otherwise he is in deep shit. He is so lucky.

GOvt has taken u for a public transport ride lo. The govt considers MAS as Public transport when they needed our money. If they make money it is a private transport. ANyway, now MAS wanna fly u from A to B so there are still literally a public transport as they are deem to be doing us a favor.

What we are witnessing now is the legend of Robin Hood in bolehland – robbing the poor to bail out the rich.

When will the breed of politicians be born, conscientious and honest, and made every effort for businessmen to invest not only to earn a reasonable return, but to achieve good things in life for the rakyat?

sigh...the timing was really wrong on this one...really pissed off when Pak Lah said the money was going to be used to better public transportation, which just didn't make sense, especially when he stated that it was "apparently lacking".

a 4.4 billion ringgit save on the subsidy will only be wasted on public transportation. this is because the people have lost faith in the effectiveness of public transportation in this country.

why?

simple, lazy ass bus drivers, lazy ass KTM Komuter controllers, who never keep to schedules, then blame everything on "technical difficulties". if a KTM engineer can stand around the station doing nothing about it, that ain't a technical difficulty, that's a mental one.

plus, since these public transportation companies NEVER make a profit, they simply feed of the government, and never giving better service..

put the 4.4 billion back in the subsidy, get the money from somewhere else! I know, take back all those ever growing benefits to government workers, and use that for public transport...oh wait, THERE IS NO PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN PUTRAJAYA...forgot that small problem...

This Umno government always has a national perspective of Malaya being Malaysia first without Sabah and Sarawak. Even after moving into Sabah after having made Muslims the majority by naturalising Filipinos and Indonesians and some Indians of Pakistani and Tamil descent, what can its promise of improving public transportation do for East Malaysia? I don't think it has any plan for East Malaysia at all. Except pumping more oil off Sabah and Sarawak to benefit Malaya more.

The whole affair smack of a knee jerk reaction typical of the BN government.

Always putting the cart before the cow.. We are talking about 4.4Bil - not 4.4ringgit. Would you believe me if I take your 4.4Bil and say, Yeah, dont worry, I will put it to good use. Oh yeah, the road need improvement, yeah, that's where the money will go to."

It gives you the feeling that all of this (improve transportation) is an excuse becos the government is unable to produce any systematic or strategic plan on how they intend to spend the money and where they will spend it to improve d public transport?

If they really have a plan, dont you think they should have already put it up on the main page of every newspaper?

nah... based on the efficiency and track record of the government. We should not bail out MAS again and again. This will just never never end... Looks like the subsidy will be better in my pocket isnt it? Ultimately, SHOW US THE PLAN!

like any increase in oil price should follow with a decrease in CAR TAXES !

don't see that gonna happen anytime soon either.

did they also say, salary of private sector to increase to accomodate the oil prices ? nope !

The English print media behaved like the 3 Monkeys at KLCC yesterday: See no evil, Hear no eveil, Speak no eveil, when it's NOT NEWS with 2,000 Malaysians demo on bread-and-butter issues. The price rise is now becoming a habit which is unjustified on any grounds, with Petronas reporting RM35.5billion last Financial Year, and expected to easily reporting some 20% more, my conservative estimate next FY.
The GEICs of these dailies write long winding pieces acting like Echo-chambers for the Gomen leaders without using their brains -- maybe God did not bestow on them any since their job only requires steno skills -- without questioning the Shafie Apdal minister like how he's going to stop the business people from raising prices, since Transport charges are a component in every business, big or small? The minister had the gall to add:what? "0.01% rise is OK" -- you think the businessmen and traders are Santa Claus thinking on such minuscule level ?-- maybe to challenge the smallness of some miniSTER's brains?

Why do I get a feeling our leaders - including the DPM's long-suffering justication of the 30sen fuel price rise and "CHANGE LIFESTYLE" advice- are living on another PLANet called CockatooLand!

Shall we ask PKR and other NGOs to plan another demo at the NST, The Star why do they think 2,000 Malaysians protesting the fuel price rise is NOT NEWSY enough to get some column inches in a national newspaper?

Thanks Jeff. I don't even know there was a strike in downtown. Geez, what happened to the mainstream media??? Glad we have internet nowadays. Phew...

Desiderata:
At least they didn't behave like they did in 1998, covering the demonstrations and printing them out as riots, choosing pictorials and headlines which seeked to put fear into the apathetic public, hence widening the gap between the knows and know-nots.

Back to the main post, I've felt this price increase is justified. We can't go on forever with highly subsidised fuel. Some economic theorists propose that peak oil has already passed, and we cannot ignore the market mechanism.

And, 'high-octane anger on the streets, overnight', Jeff? Tsk, tsk. I thought you were better than that.

haiz..
they cover up the news again?
this gonna screw my weekend mood..
i read zero news about yesterday klcc thing.
So disappointed.
all no ballz to face the reality.
thx god we got internet.

It's always amusing to hear our ministers making warnings to businesses not to raise prices whenever there's a fuel price hike. Their usual justification - fuel costs of many ingredients are quite small (which is probably true).

How come the increased cost of transportation of the employer, employees and the goods are never factored-in, in the production of the roti-canai or char koay teow?

What the ministers should have done is to tell the consumers to avoid paying unjustifiable prices by boycotting the products and services, or by finding alternatives. More warnings and price monitorings just won't do the work.

The govt should get out of this business of controlling prices as soon as possible. It's like associating fires with firemen - everytime the govt reduces the fuel subsidy, the govt gets the unnecessary blame. How come we don't even have any anti-trust or anti-competitive laws like all developed countries?

Don't tell me all our economic advisers/planners are all hard-core Keynesians? If that is the case, then we probably need to go through another lost decade (I consider 1997 to the present time as one lost decade).

is it true that MAS has 23k workers whereas SIA only has 13K workers? HOw come in MSIA we need 5 persons to do the job of 1? Are we catching up with the Irish?

There are also people using cars and motorcycles in the rural and suburban areas. Why should they subsidize those in the urban areas through this new price hike that will obviously benefit the latter at the expense of the former, all on the basis that if public transportation had been better planned earlier, we wouldn't be facing this situation today?

Secondly, why can't the extra oil revenue from better export oil price be used to set up the trust fund, instead of loading the costs directly onto the rakyat and industries, two national entities already at wits' ends on how to balance their budgets against the shrunken value of the ringgit?

Thirdly, will the fund also be used to improve amenities in oil-producing states?

Fourthly, will the govt come out to reaffirm that the fund will not be used to bailout MAS, a public-transportation company?

Fifthly, did the planners know that everyday the malay man and his wife drive their new hire-purchased car to the petrol station and fill up with RM5.00? Now can they assay how much the couple can afford to fill up so that they can drive to office, and still have enough gas in the tank to return home?

Sixthly (sickly), will there be a TNB price hike coming up next?

All these years, the Umno administration has created can-do myths, carved bleeding shortcuts, spawned cryonism, ignored the plain language of discompetitive realities and muzzled the media from exposing the facts.

Now everyone pays the price.

No matter how you try to answer those questions above, the end-conclusion is that this govt is hiding something else from the rakyat that'll be injurious to their future if it's not tackled headon. Now.

I suppose they allocate more time to read and think logically who is right and who is wrong.
Instead of releasing anger against the present gov,they should initiate a mass rally against their highly respected Tun Dr Mahathir and get rid of him from Petronas.

sorry to be off topic but jeff, your color selection makes it difficult to read on a PDA. Pls change it

Let's rethink about 'changing life style' statement made by the government - if all people become very wise in spending,

what will happen to this countries economy?

what will happen to the 'luxurious spending sector'?

To say 'change the lifestyle' is darn easy - as if they know well about the economy.

One way of changing your lifestyle is by doing extra processing in your brains whenever you read, hear or see something. Examples:

1. "Only 20 minutes to KL" should be translated as "Only RM1000 per month in petrol/tolls/parking fees/fines/wear and tear"

2. "Terrace/Link Housing Estate" = "Car-dependence Housing Estate"

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. The solution to all this tension is very simple: Reality. Right now, car prices in Malaysia are kept artificially high, and fuel was until recently kept artificially low.
How to keep the balance now that fuel prices reflect the true market rate? Make the cars also reflect the market rate.
Seriously, if the taxes that create the protected market for Proton was abolished, I don't think anybody would mind paying even rm2.50 for petrol if it meant a substantial savings in servicing an insane bank loan for a proper car.
Just Do the math. A 2.4L Toyota Camry in Malaysia costs rm180,000 OTR, over the long term with a 10 year loan, that’s nearly rm 360,000 including interest. Imagine if that very same car, only costs rm 60,000 if the Proton Protection tax was abolished.
With the very same rm 360,000 you are going to spend anyway over 10 years, and assuming you also took it on a 10 year loan, suddenly the very same car +Interest is only 120,000. That still leaves you with the grand sum of rm240,000, that just under a 1/3 MILLION ringgit with which to pay for petrol.
Plus, I'd imagine with realistic taxes on Cars, people might actually be able to pay cash for cars, especially smaller ones thus saving more money.

Also over the long term, we’d have many more side benefits, such as turning up the heat on Proton to deliver or die, ensuring as a result less people die on the road due to unsafe Protons. Then there’s making the sinfully rich banks in Malaysia poorer, forcing them to reverse their very low savings interest rates and stuck up attitudes by making them work for their money.

I say again, Reality.

(sigh) never thought OPEC country like malaysia have to hike fuel price to such a political cost(saving a non profit business).. hmm seen this before havent we.

Here in UK the fuel price is bizzare high too, 0.99pence near a pound a liter (cost me 40 pound to fill my ford focus full tank),because there are not an OPEC country.

So my collegue here goes to work by taking a bus,train,bicycle.Seem this would be our future.

Owning a car would be a thing of a past in vision 2020.

No point talking too much, change your lifestyle and tighten your belts. I can think of few steps who wanna follow?

1) Terminate ASSTRO, Whatever channels available is good enough. It will do more good for you and your family. How many family are wasting their valueable time in front of ASSTRO by changing channels. Have better and more quality time with your kids. Draw a painting together, play a round guli... etc..

2) Do you really need a streamyx at home for chatting, surfing and allow your kids playing online game nonstop? I dont think so.

3) If you have atleast 2 mobile phones at home (husband and wife). Do you really need another fix line at home? Yes, I know mobile call rate is expensive, but, why spend hours cooking poridge on the phone? and paying hefty bills ? Whose fault is that? Maybe u just need another mobile phone at home for contact purposes.

4)Cut down eating outside and going to shopping mall. Do I need to say more on this? Buy only what is needed, eat enough to survive.

5) Forget about holiday la. My parents never travel in their life and they were happier than anybody.

Well, i am more of insulting than advising since this is what our gov want us to do so I just simply echoing them.

Better still, close down all the highway and use bullock cart then we will assure our oil reserve will be there for the next thousand year.

Under this administration we are going backward and backward.. what a pity..

jeff, i wish to congratulate you for spotting the faults in the spins. i may be among the minority in foreseeing the gov's gradual move away from fuel subsidy and start doing the "right thing" AND reckon it's the right way to go. the reactions last week seem to confirm that assumption. unless the majority is silent, again. otherwise, the majority must be ignorant.
those who have been complaining about our national car policy, about cronyism, about bail-outs, about various other forms in gov controls should be the last to attack the latest reduction in fuel subsidy.
a PM who let the fuel price float is one who has chosen not to use fuel-subsidy as a vote-buying currency. a PM who allows deregulation of fuel prices is more likely to free up our automobile market as well. a PM who is willing to make an economically correct decision over a politically safe one is a real leader that has the good of the nation in mind rather than his own benefit.
surely our current PM is very different from the last one and i have heard enough from people who missed the "good old days" but i for one am glad to have a leader who has the wisdom to see and the gut to burst the bubble that was built up. unfortunately, for the current PM, for us the people, and our beloved Malaysia, the loudest voices seem to be that in favour of protecting and expanding the bubble! many people it seems are only interested in short term gains. it heightens my fear that the majority is indeed ignorant...
we are less than 15 years from 2020. could someone please remind me a developed nation with a fuel subsidy and national car policy?

PARTI BN = PARTI BARANG NAIK.

BEKERJALAH BERSAMA-SAMA SAYA...ha ha ha he he he...

I have told you guys many, many times in this blog...The G can cut the subsidy of petrol/diesel, but they must also lower down the tax on cars..Imagine, we take a 7 years loan. I have calculated that we can finish paying it in 4 years..The rest of the 3 years , we are only paying the tax....If the car price is lowered down a lot, then I think nobody will complain the hike in petrol/diesel. Just imagine how much a VIOS cost in Thailand and in Malaysia?

Again I am telling you all: PARTI BN=PARTI BARANG NAIK.

Kudos ISK, U have made a very clear point here but unfortunately most of our fellow M'sians seem don't see the real picture.
Let me ask you guys a question,assume that you were in his position,what would you do when you known that your pockets dried up and yet you need funds for developments?
Btw Devils and Deep Blue Sea,I am sure this is a every tough decision to him that betting on his entire political career.
To me this is truly unfair to him,how can you expect someone to just come out and manage to turnaround within short time for things that has been around for the past 20 yrs.Come on,Rome was not built in a day.
Who shld be the one to get rid? I am sure you would have the answer in your mind.

AirSnort,

I don't think the govt can reduce the taxes on cars for the moment. Besides protecting Proton, I think another reason is that the govt stands to lose a lot of revenue. The excise duty and sales tax on the sale of a new vehicle can cover up to 10 years of income taxes for a typical taxpayer.

In my opinion, without the GST in place, the govt would have to rely on car taxes to balance up loses due to tax evasions.

So, if you want a reduction in car prices, please pray that the govt implements the GST as soon as possible. Car prices in Australia went down dramatically after the Aussie govt launched their GST and abolished wholesale taxes.

The GST is a very difficult tax to evade and without that tax in place, honest taxpayers would have to subsidize all those tax evaders.

lsk,

Just curious, may I know why a developed nation don't have these two things (national car policy and fuel subsidy)?

Instead of comparing what who have this and who's don't.

What are the conditions (financially, goverment, etc...)of the people of the developed nation that they feel ok with it?

In 15 years time, we will have bullet train...Right?

Oh, these are a honest questions. Pls enlighten me. Thank you.

The govt has advised itself wrongly. Looking at some spanky new cars in the Klang Valley, it concludes that the economy's up. Looking at shoppers in 1Utama and Megamall, it concludes that they reflect the same everywhere else. Looking at its own warped stats and oil prices, it concludes the good times are incipient.

But even the NST is wrong. There are not 157,000 househusbands in this country. There are 157,000 and one househusbands in this country.

And who cannot remember there're at least 60,000 unemployed(-able) graduates being paid RM500 monthly allowance, despite the slew of job ads in Star Saturday?

In their sunbathed Putrajaya enclave and cosy TTDI, Tropicana, Bukit Damansara bungalows, they forget the rest of the country is not doing that well.

Living on card credit, the commonfolks will have to face up to huge bills they can't pay. Because their pay's too small, growing too slowly to catch up with inflation and the shrinking ringgit.

Talking about subsidy removal versus anticronyism is deflective argument here. The rakyat are suffering from past excesses and present handwringing. Cringing globalization has arrived. The levees have been breached. Unless they make breakaway changes to the way this country/economy is run, we will soon join the very family of states who have looked up to us before as a model of progress.

No more microarguments.

beefstew,

The UK,US, the Soviet Union and China's economic models shared many similarities (with many differences, of course) up until the late 1970s. Central planning and price controls were the order of the day, with either:
1. subsidies given to businesses
2. govt involvement in business
3. businesses were protected in certain ways from free competition.

The price controls created severe shortages and fueled inflation (ironic huh?) and the economic slowdowns always depended on govt overspending for stimulation.

Thatcher and Reagan solved all that by removing all price controls and embraced the free markets. Deng Xiao Ping followed a slightly different model, but based on free markets as well. Thatcher went on a privatization binge, getting the govt of business as well as reducing govt spending. The US and UK abandoned the John Maynard Keynes economic model in favour of Milton Friedman and Friedrich Von Hayek's idea of total free markets.

The total embrace of the free markets usually create a short period of inflation, but in the many countries where it was tried (we may be seeing it soon in Indonesia), the results were surprisingly successful.

The MD of MAS and the Govt. should make the MAS revamp plan public. Let the public debate and offer ideas. MAS is a national airline and the Malaysian citizens have an equal say in its ailout or demise.
I'm sure there are many Malaysians that can offer good advise to MAS on how to turn around the airline. First and foremost cutback the 23000 workers. Why do MAS need 23000 workers with a fleet of under 100 aircraft/ SIA have over 100 aircraft and only have 13,000 workers.

stop whinning and wake up to reality. there is not enough oil to sustain our present lifestyle. We are not an OPEC nation as mentioned, but a relatively small oil producer. However we are big on natural gas, whose price escalate with crude oil. The new automotive policy should encourage the elimination of petrol cars for bio-diesel (estimated minimum 20% savings in consumption), total ban on two stroke engines, polluting as well as thirsty and research funding in local universities and businesses on alternative fuels.

Different arguments above:

1. Stop subsidy for some means in the long run create a real economy influenced by market forces and encourage efficiency/productive.
2. Stop subsidy now for some means rob Peter to pay Paul, and Peter here is not you or me but the small people in our midst while Paul happens to be a glutton and prodigal son.

The timing to do it now does it reflect 1 or 2?? Do you think 1 will work if 2 around?? From Malaysian experience is 1 proven or 2 is proven in your life time??

I’m not a socialist but the defenceless and weak cannot be trampled for the powerful few even if the issue does not affect you. Get the order right – Take out 2 first then let’s do 1.

last year if im not mistaken 3 times petrol is increased,i was not even in country and when i came back the bus fare is increased,all the food n drinks,groceries also increased,even milo also eapensive,and now with the　ぺt路lひ petrol hike,again all the shopkeepers,suppliers will increase the prices-alasan-petrol naik,the poor and middle class people will suffer,i wonder when the average income of malaysian will also increase to enable the purchasing power of malaysians,pooverty will increase in stastics,less salary,expensive goods,budget and unhealty food for the poor,soon i think the poors can even can afford to buy at least a motobike coz all the money earned spend on food which getting expensive, Bravo Pak Lah,you did a good job!! A big booo on you!!

4.4b= 4b for MAS, .4b for PUBLIC Transport.
400million can buy how many buses? Say each bus at $200k, 2000 buses! Wow, start buying DRB hicom!

For those of your hoping that car prices will fall, I don;t think it will ever happen. Even if it does, it not a wise move to raise price of petrol but reduce the price of cars.

Should there be a reduction in prices of cars, it will benefit only the upper middle income earners who have been eyeing on imported cars. How about the ordinary rakyat? The majority of people who live in rural areas whose househole income is less than RM3,000 per month, reduction in the price of toyota, honda and etc is not going to boost their standard of living.

Worst still, the govt. would be imposing GST or VAT beginning next year. Assuming the VAT/GST is about 5%, practically every business transaction like buying a house and car would be increased by 5%.

Pak Lah's quest of balancing a budget is laudable but I would admire him more if he would stand firm against Tun M's insistence of the billion dollar 'scenic' bridge to Singapore.

Other than that, why can't the govt make NGV fuel available in all petrol stations and not only in selected few Petronas stations. I would not mind installing the NGV tank in my car if the fuel is widely availble to all.

It is easy for Pak Lah to request the Rakyat to change their lifestyle and start planting own vegetables. I guess he should have just requested to dig for own oil instead!

"Shall we ask PKR and other NGOs to plan another demo at the NST, The Star why do they think 2,000 Malaysians protesting the fuel price rise is NOT NEWSY enough to get some column inches in a national newspaper? "

Maybe 2,000 M'sians protesting ain't much a big deal to be called news. NGOs should rally at least 10,000 M'sians and clog Dataran Merdeka in a "People Power" kind of rally if they want to make impact in the press. Or stir enough rumble like the Reformasi days.

Thank you v2k20,

Although, you'd given great example but I can't help thinking this; In America, those changes(price control, free market)affect the Americans. In China, the Chinese and of course in UK, the English. And of course soon if Indonesia. Well, Indonesian.

In Malaysia, beside subsidies for ALL of her people. There ARE additional subsidies for 'SOME' of her special people.

If those changes happens, these special people will go mad. These are those freemarketphobic kind people. Their protective Goverment won't let this happen.

So, if the blessing for this hike up to is take the first step towards the free market/developed state, well good. Because I am among those without "additional subsidies" survive competing with those with additional subsidies , by the time the impact of the changes is felt. I'll be more than ready

All this while I thought globalisation will kill those people. So can the free market. Or are they the same?

20% increase in the hike of oil price is rediculous. The funny part is the govt is going after consumer retailer who actually increase the price of goods. Dont you think this is really weird ??? Why is the government going after retailer since the real culprit is the government itself. We cant blame retailers if they increase the price because cost increases by huge margin.

Read the Thestar newspaper. The forntpage shows that govt going to catch a "Selling Nasi Ayam" stall if he increased the price of chicken rice. This is rediculous. It is up to the retailers to increase the price of chicken rice.You cant stop retailer if they want to increase the price.WHY NOT GOVERNMENT CLOSE ALL THE STARBUCKS CAFES WHICH SELL COFFEE RM11 while local shops is only offering at RM 1 a glass.

Where is the logic here ?

http://www.malaysiandiary.com

C'mon Kalimullah, your continuing spin on the positive side of Pak Lah isn't going to help him in the long run. By blanketing out the news of the fuel hike demonstration last friday, you are merely postponing the inevitable. You are eroding your own credibility. Wong Sulong, this merely confirms your lack of credibility as a national newspaper.

As someone said above, it's good that we're moving towards a freemarket system. No developed country has to have the government subsidising its oil. Slowly allowing the oil prices in Malaysia to really reflect world prices will remind us that we can't have it good forever. What happens when the oil runs out then?

By slowly (I emphasise slowly) letting the price rise, the government is doing a couple of things. It forces people to use less oil, which is good for the environment and to save our and the world's resources until a viable alternative is found. It's good also because the government saves huge amounts of money, which IF MANAGED PROPERLY (again the emphasis) can really benefit the people. Sure, cost of living will go up, for a slight period of time. But people will soon adapt to the changes. Also that 4.4 billion saved can be given back to the people in the form of income tax cuts and in other ways.

I think it's a pretty brave move, and I think (with my A Level standard economics :) ) that it's a good move in the long run for us all.

Lim Si Pin said :

“If MAS made a loss of RM1 billion in the preceding year, than even the RM4.4 billion savings can only last the government for four years. In the end, nobody benefits. But the damage will be done and the top management of MAS or whoever is responsible, goes scot free.”

Ohhhh please... its grossly deceptive and naive. Si Pin, pls re-read your undergrad biz book.

beefstew,

Actually, I don't see the preferential treatment given to bumis as non-bumis totally subsidizing bumis (i'm non-bumi). Actually the bumis are not the only subsidy recipients whenever a form of racial discrimination takes place. Take places in the public universities for example - in the strictest sense, we have been subsidizing Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and the UK for decades because of our preferential treatment policies. Do you see my point? It's like telling the foreign countries, "Hey, take our rejected 12-year publicly-funded students, plus RM500,000 for the tuition fees and other costs. No, it's free of charge. You are welcome".

We, in a sense, discriminated against our own small businesses when we concentrated in getting foreign investments into the country. Singapore, too blundered in this respect and they have been making a lot of effort to lower the cost of doing business by getting rid of archaic laws, introducing new business vehicles and encouraging small entrepreneurs to set up shop there.

Our small private companies have been subsidizing their foreign counterparts because of our non-action to get rid of archaic compliance requirements such as audits, minimum 2 directors rule, minimum 2 shareholders rule, professionally-qualified secretary, annual returns and high incorporation fees.

Take conveyancing for example. Many countries have abolished scale fees and subject them to free competition or have eliminated the rules completely. When others do that, but we don't means we are subsidizing them in this era of globalization.

So, the bumis aren't the only extra-subsidy recipients in this country.

Before squeezing the people on the fuel subsidies,this govt can fill its pocket up by squeezing on the filthy rich one first.
Malaysian businessmen,big or small,are excellent in "proper tax planning".These businessmen xpecially those Dato-Dato,Datin-Datin and etc shld be checked thoroughly & strictly on their networth,sources of income to make sure they have paid the necessary taxes.In this context,Hasil has got more to do,current RM50 Billion tax collection target shld be increased to Rm75 Billion.
Soccer betting is virtually legal in M'sia,whether you like it or not,it is unlikely to get rid of it.Take it as a fact.
So,why don't banking on it by legalise it and it is a gold pot to tap on,contributing Billion of Ringgit to govt's pocket everyear.

Make sense, teh-o.

Improve Public Transportation & Infrastructure Plan: Status = Pending for something to happen first.

Our govt favourite motto is R-E-A-C-T. That should be why there isn't any plan on improving our public transport. Something has to happen first. Like what?

1. Build a new highway e.g. LDP, if traffic jam reaches a stand still regularly for more than a year.
2. Tear part of it down after 2 months to build flyover coz it was still jam.
3. Approve more housing development along this highway with a single entry & exit point.
4. Tear part of it down after the housing projects completed coz surprisingly, that area often experience serious conjestion.
5. Re tar road
6. Road-digging after 2 months coz need to install new piping/electrical cables.
7. More $$$ to plan and restructure draining system due to flood when heavy rain for 1/2 day.
8. More $$$ to build new dam due to insufficient electricity supply - consumption increased.
9. More flood!!
10. Less water!
11. And the list goes on....

For each projects awarded to be carried out. There are $$$$ leakages through the process. High $$$ wastage: consultant fees, worker fees, material fees, launching fees, coffee & tea fees.

Soooo, how should we improve our public transportation?
1. Someone has to die to stop reckless bus drivers
2. One or more politicians have to travel by public transportation (this will improve public transportation within their routes)

Another serious problem is hiring the wrong planners to do the job.
1. They don't live there
2. They don't use public transport
3. Their plans R ideal but any donkeys who uses it and lives there know they won't work.