With just a few days to go before the goods and services tax (GST) is implemented nationwide, the government needs to iron out the possible chinks in the change-over, especially in the starting phase.

To assure consumers, enforcement personnel need to be stationed in popular shopping areas. Their presence is not for penalising offenders but for ‘friendly enforcement’ to ensure that both retailers and consumers understand the GST process and not be exploited or disadvantageous under the new tax system.

The presence of the enforcement personnel from the local authorities and the relevant ministries will reassure the consumers, and that any unexpected problems that arise can be immediately dealt with by the government.

The government also needs to look into the prospect of retailers rounding off the 6 percent tax to 10 percent.

Assuming that an item costs RM1.00, the new price after GST will be RM1.06. However, shopkeepers are going to round it off to RM1.10 and so on. How the GST is going to affect discounts, rebates and other incentives is also to be seen.

It is hoped that the media - radio, TV, newspapers and others will focus more on the core issues of price increases in the next few days to prepare the people for the deadline. The transition from the sales and service tax (SST) to GST should be no more problematic than when the weighing system changed from kati to kilogram a few decades ago.

However, the government needs to monitor the situation closely as the GST is more complex.  The government needs to prevent a price upheaval in the short-term before the situation settles down.

There will definitely be spillover effects as prices will increase from one stage of production/services to another for a wide range of products. There will also be the ‘domino effect’ when one trader justifies the increase because ‘others’ have done so, leaving him no other option. This must be seriously checked.

The April Fool’s joke should not be on the unsuspecting consumer. Hoarding should be discouraged and avoided for a smooth transition during the first few days. Businesses paying the GST must place the GST signs at their premises for the authorities to check. It should not be the case previously when businesses, especially restaurants, imposed a service tax but instead of paying the tax to the government, they pocketed the proceeds.

The GST is a good tax system as all will become taxpayers, including the millions of foreign workers and tourists. Government coffers could soon be overflowing. The government must use the increased resources wisely for needful projects to help the people and further develop the country and prevent misappropriation, misuse, corruption and waste of government funds.  

Possibly the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia (BRIM) aid could be increased to help the poor. The GST will result in a virtuous cycle if it brings all-round benefits to the people.