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COMMENT Budget 2017 is one of the worst that I have read as an ordinary citizen of this country.

Unlike previous budgets which addressed the real issues, this year’s budget appears to be just some simplistic ‘hush-hush’ political speech.

I wonder who crafted the budget, that even the use of tenses was incorrect. For example, we are now into 2017 but in paragraph 32, the text read: “As a result, global growth is expected to moderate 3.1 percent in 2016 from 3.2 percent in 2015.”

As Hazlan Zakaria put it, Budget 2017 appeared to be more like a “three-ring circus ringmaster's pitch”. Instead of paying to the budget, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak threw in a couple of examples from nasi lemak anak dara to one Professor Hamka, and even took a jibe at a former prime minister and Bersih rally.

What is lacking is a speech that gels. For example, I cannot even see how paragraph 153 and 154 are linked. They are totally incoherent to say the least. In my opinion, it is dangerous to have someone with such incoherent thinking to helm the nation, as we have already seen how one government agenda item after another is implemented without a clear direction.

(Just before the last general election, we heard so much about 1Malaysia. Now, suddenly we hear about TN50, which again was said to be a branding of what he calls 2050 National Transformation. If anything it should be NT50, unless Najib has the intention to glorify himself by building a legacy which I do not think he deserves it - as Tun Najib 2050 plan - therefore TN50.

(So, my question is what happens to Vision 2020? Have we even achieved the goals set forth in 2020? How is this TN50 linked to 1Malaysia? What happened to the favourite Economic Transformation Plan (ETP) and Government Transformation Plan (GTP)? Were they created to just convince people to vote for Barisan Nasional?).

Back to Paragraph 153. Without mentioning the context, Najib quoted one Professor Hamka, who said that “pure soul emanates from a healthy lifestyle, while sports and recreational activities will lead to a wholesome character-building.” Suddenly, in the following paragraph, Najib said: “However, bersih (healthy lifestyle) here does not refer to the Bersih rally.”

Professor Hamka never talked about ‘cleanliness’ but a healthy lifestyle - which includes eating nutritious food instead of nasi lemak anak dara, time to exercise and rest. Although hygiene is only a part of what constitutes a healthy lifestyle, to try to force in an illustration to ridicule Bersih rally is too far-fetched, and an insult to the rakyat. Doesn’t Najib want a clean and fair election, too?

Personally, I am not impressed with Budget 2017. To say that I am impressed with the budget read out by Najib is like saying a fat lady is cute instead of being perennially clumsy.

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