YOURSAY ‘BN continued spending like there was no tomorrow. Now they say that there's no other choice but to raise prices. Whose fault is that?'

Gov't: What choice is there but to raise prices?

your say, Yoursay Foo: International Trade and Industry Minister Mustapa Mohamed, there are always choices in life and raising prices in just one of them. Why not consider:

1. Cut expenditure - only spend what you have

2. Open tenders

3. Downsize the bloated civil service

4. Cut down the number of ministers/ministries

5. Open up the market

6. Renegotiate all the lopsided ‘piratisation' agreements

The list can go on and I'm not even an economist!

Anonymous_3e86: The deficit did not happen overnight. Years of overspending and corruption has driven our country into dangerous grounds. The poor will become even poorer, while these BN politicians continue to plunder whatever remains of the country's wealth.

BN did not heed the rakyat's complaints about corruption. It continued spending like there was no tomorrow. Now they say that there is no other choice. Whose fault is that? The rakyat's?

Why make the rakyat suffer when all those mismanagement and corruption are from BN politicians themselves?

Can anyone point out any ‘poor' BN politician? Just look at the big houses and cars these corrupt politicians have. Isn't it obvious where the wealth came from? Isn't it obvious why the country is in deficit?

Ferdtan: Why did the government allow the deficit to grow so alarming that new taxes like GST (Goods and Services Tax), etc, are imposed? This comes with the withdrawals of government subsidies. Who shall we blame?

Malaysia is rich with natural resources and with petroleum revenue of over RM80 billion per annum, what has happened to the billions?

Mustapa, you do have a choice. If the government and you cannot do the job, let others do it. That is obviously asking too much from BN leaders - they are deeply worried the gravy train could stop.

Joker: Mustapa, you are a minister, we are just simple Malaysians but we all know what to do when debt is high.

When the government raised car prices through excise duties and pulled back subsidies, all these increased the expenses of Malaysians. Malaysians bucked up and took second/third jobs plus cut down on expenses to balance their budgets.

The federal government only knows how to increase tax and cut subsidies meant for the people. They never cut expenses. Just look at the yearly growth rate of the government expenditure, which far surpasses Malaysia's GDP growth rate. This is called living beyond your means. This is called living on debt.

Cut subsidies by all means. If you are man enough and responsible enough, cut your expenses, too. Otherwise, you are like what the Chinese call "prefer to eat soft rice".

Onyourtoes: If the federal government is a "responsible government which looks at the future", it would not have managed the economy the way it did the last three decades. The deficit is not just due to subsidies alone.

In fact, subsidies are the consequence of government distortionary policies which indiscriminately create monopolies and bloodsucking cronies at the expense of efficient market mechanism to determine prices and output.

Just look at the bulk of the government expenditure - first, it was inefficiently done and second, it was geared toward non-capacity-building projects.

In all fairness, the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) and the KLIA2 are capacity-building projects, but they were done with high cost overruns and delay.

Spending on endless consultancies, protocol and ceremonial events, grandeur and white elephant projects are neither efficiently done nor for capacity-building. These are a total waste.

I have said a thousand times already - cut the federal budget by 15 to 20 percent over two years and it will not affect common Malaysians.

Why 15 to 20 percent? Simple, 10 percent cut is due to overpricing and 5 to 10 percent is due to unnecessary purchase. Cutting the expenditure by 20 percent is equivalent to solving the fiscal deficit incurred today.

I believe the government has the choice. It is just that the government prefers to protect and pamper the politicians, government servants and the cronies instead of taking care of the interest of ordinary Malaysians. This government must come to its painful end.

Awakening: If things are transparent, many things can be so much cheaper, many things we do not have to pay. I think it is the "competency, efficiency and effectiveness" of a government that counts.

Perhaps, the government has to look at a new way to run the country rather than say "what choice is there but to raise price?" If you have no way to curb this situation, then say it and with an open mind, accept other opinions.

Myop101: Has the government addressed financial mismanagement and wastages? Has the government sacked those responsible and put into operation procedures that ensure that such mistakes aren't repeated?

When it is a ‘no' to both questions, then why ask the rakyat to pay for government mismanagement?

Oh Ya?: All they are concerned about is the country's rating, not the people's suffering. And if they want the people to tighten the belt, have they walked the talk?

Instead, they spend millions on electricity bills, jetting around for fun, and subsidising and enriching themselves in the name of NEP (New Economic Policy).

CiViC: How irresponsible. I give you a choice Mustapa - resign. Along with all the other BN ministers who had brought our country to this state.

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