LETTER | Public policies must be based on rationale, purpose and the long-term interests of the nation. These are not for appeasement, to cater to parochial or vested interests or to meet short-term gratification.

Public policies must be bold and courageous. Do the right things and the right things will mitigate any temporary fallout. Don’t be afraid to act.

Do consult with constituents but the goal is to seek information, rather than be dictated by them. Excessive consultation is a sign of procrastination and not knowing what to do.

Don’t ask the people whether they want to continue with their “Bantuan Sara Hidup” (Cost of living assistance, formerly known as BR1M). Don’t ask the fishermen whether they want to continue with their monthly allowance. Don’t ask whether every student in the country is entitled to PTPTN loan. These are stupid questions begetting stupid answers.

If there are six million people eligible for Bantuan Sara Hidup, it calls into question the efficacy and effectiveness of our economic management – where did the fruits of development go the last 60 years?

When fishermen get monthly allowances on top of fuel subsidy, tell me which idiot would want to go fishing? Is there any wonder why the amount spent on fuel subsidy has no direct correlation with the amount of catch landed?

If every student is entitled to PTPTN loan, it means the country has no middle class or no middle-income group, as simple as that. It is a fact many obtained PTPTN loans because it is easy money with the possibility of not paying back.

In case we have not realised this – “universal entitlement” – is now the dreaded disease of this country. Every scheme, every help and every welfare programme we could think of must be dished out to all and sundry.

No ability to separate the needy from those who are not

We have no ability, or political will, to separate the needy from those who are not, the deserving from those who are not and the essential from the pomp. We want to be popular and we think government resources are unlimited.

Don’t ask employers, middlemen and the approving authorities whether Malaysia needs more foreign workers. That is a stupid question again. It is the job of the government to formulate strategies and set targets on foreign workers, taking into consideration our employment and economic needs.

There must be specific targets to phase in and phase out foreign workers in line with our national objectives. Human Resources Minister M Kulasegaran was hapless in defending his proposal to phase out foreign cooks in this country. What else is new when restaurant owners were up in arms against Kulasegaran’s proposal?

At the rate we are going, someday even our policemen and immigration officers too will be staffed by foreign workers. After all, they are cheaper, more hardworking and very obedient. You see, we talk as if we are not Malaysians ourselves.

Now, I heard we want to review Kedai Satu Malaysia, Digital Mall, Menu Satu Malaysia, Buku Satu Malaysia and all the other “satu”. You know what; all this should have been shut down yesterday.

We have a functioning market economy. We should just focus on market efficiency by breaking up the monopolies, removing the unnecessary APs and improving trade facilitation and leaving the rest to business people.

It is useless to enforce price control. Singapore, Japan, Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States have no enforcement agencies going around harassing traders every day or during every festive season. They just make sure the market is relatively efficient.

The high cost of living is not just due to traders exploiting and making ugly profits. It has much to do with ringgit management and the amount of transfer payments occurring in the economy.

If we are truly prudent and sensible in our economic management, the ringgit would have strengthened over time, not suffering massive depreciation every few years. Notwithstanding our rich resources, it is not difficult for us to notice how far the ringgit has declined against the Singapore dollar since 1975. When we have too many people getting too much for doing very little, that is inflationary.

Please do not belittle what I am saying simply because I do not have a big name. I may take one hour to write this letter, but it is one hour plus 30 years of experience and five years of college education.