An Umno senator has slammed the government for choosing an easy fix to hike electricity rates before first exhausting all other options.

Senator Ezam Mohd Noor said if this was carried out despite public protests, the BN government would lose its credentials as a government that wants transformation..

"A transformative government of a developed country must explore efficiency and find sophisticated ways to tackle problems, not just take the easy way out and add to the people's burden," Ezam, an Umno deputy division chief, said in a statement.

ezam mohd noor at mca function 2 Ezam ( right ), who is also a member of the special commission on corruption, said the government had other ways to save money.

He said the government was wrong in worrying about corporate profits in raising electricity costs, before fully tackling leakages, bribery and lopsided agreement issues.

While these other paths may be more complicated, the government that wants to be transformative must serve the lower people, not the corporate class, Ezam said.

Speaking at a briefing session to back the tariff hike in Putrajaya today, Energy Commission CEO Ahmad Fauzi Hasan justified the hikes by saying that power companies needed more revenue to help bear the costs that involved plenty of repair works.

Despite its manifesto promising government transformation, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's second term in office has so far been marked with price hikes for petrol, sugar, property assessment rates and recently, electricity tariffs and toll rates.

NONE

Related stories

Gov't: Hikes and subsidy cuts good for you

Ibrahim Ali: Don't protest over price hikes

Liow: Plunge in Najib's rating a temporary setback

BN backbenchers join growing strife against toll hike

'Tariff hike needed for maintenance and costs'

2014 set to be the year of demonstrations

BR1Ms before GE13, now you pay

Expect Najib's approval ratings to slide even more

You can't go wrong as toll operators, profits guaranteed

Selangor shows it can do without raising tolls