YOURSAY | ‘I believe the time has come for a loud jihad against the rising US dollar.’

MP blasts PM, Zafrul for silence on 24-year low currency exchange

M’sia not in economic crisis, Zafrul says amid weakening ringgit

BobbyO: We have an administration that is busy trying to prepare for the general election. The latest increase in allowances for government servants and students shows that they are more interested in winning support. Expect more announcements as we get closer to the polls.

On the other hand, they seem to be completely helpless or incapable of handling the economy and the rise of the US dollar.

Our foreign debts are going to cost the taxpayers more. The importers are going to be affected by the price of goods brought in. Also, ordinary people will have to cough out more money to buy their necessities.

Not to forget, the recent rise in the base lending rate. The monthly payments to the banks are going to increase. It will affect all those who have bank loans, especially housing.

The cabinet members and the top civil servants may not be affected in a major way by these increases. The average individual will see a dent in their finances every month. Pity those in the lower strata of society who are just barely surviving.

Cogito Ergo Sum: The average person in the rural constituencies does not feel the impact of the falling ringgit. These are Umno/BN’s power bases.

Notice that no one in the government has explained why the currency is falling. Because it does not affect their supporters. Only those who are importing materials for industries and other goods and services will be badly affected.

The administration will ignore these questions because answering them will alert their supporters that something may be amiss.

BlueShark1548: The eyes of the Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz are only on the 15th general election and how to get maximum votes. Both are not focused on the economy or the cost of living,

Do they know how to address our economic issues? No one in the present cabinet is competent on these matters and is relying on the civil servants working on autopilot.

Indeed, can you rely on the man behind the Mara Digital Mall to deal with national and international economic and monetary issues?

LimeGoat2442: Neither Ismail Sabri nor Zafrul can do anything, unfortunately. It is policy-driven. So long as Malaysia relies on cheap labour to grow the economy, the currency will continue to depreciate.

So long as investment policies remain restrictive and racially driven, private investments will continue to decline.

It’s a downward spiral that the country has been on for six decades. If S$1 can be RM3.2 in 40 years, will it be S$1 to RM6 by 2060?

OrangeKucing5562: Zafrul, most of our imports are paid in US dollars. That means higher prices for Malaysian consumers as the cost is passed on to us directly.

For exports, the sellers are the gainers and none of it will be passed on to Malaysian consumers. Do you understand?

Karnak: Ask yourself how much of what we eat is actually imported. We're a net food importer. And the next important question is, of the food imported, are these staples (like sugar, rice, etc)?

The short-term solution would be to prop up the ringgit. The real solution would be to have a holistic food security policy.

Zafrul isn't being disingenuous, and in some regards, he's not wrong. It's just that he's skirting the larger problem of the underlying reasons for our cost-of-living increases.

OCT: The government will never admit its failings. It would be suicidal to do so. All this while, the government has been blowing its own horn that the GDP will grow by almost six percent every year, when, in fact, it is not true.

Everything is rosy, according to the government. There is nothing to worry about. No money, borrow more.

The government doesn’t have a concrete plan to arrest our national debts but to raise the debt level higher. This year it is US$1 to RM4.50. Don't be surprised that by next year it will be US$1 to RM5.

Politicians are more interested in who should be in the government rather than the welfare of Malaysians. In addition, the government is implementing more restrictions and rules that are not conducive to investors.

Malaysia is moving more toward religious-mandated policies which are not attractive to investors. Corruption is at an all-time high. So is the cost of living, and dying. We are in a hell of a bad time.

Bluemountains: On one hand, they are going around distributing goodies (to civil servants and Mara students) like Santa Claus.

On the other hand, they are planning to cut down on petrol subsidies and reintroduce the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Civil servants and pensioners are entitled to free medical under their terms of service and contract. However, they are now compelled to pay for certain expensive medicines due to a lack of funds.

Where is the free medical service that they are entitled to under the terms of their employment contract?

MS: Enough is enough! I believe the time has come for a loud jihad against the rising US dollar.

How dare it rise like this without any consideration for our feelings? And with no regard for everything ‘ketuanan’!

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