I'm not against 'maha kaya' people - PM

PARLIAMENT | Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim today defended his "maha kaya" remark in his Budget 2024 last Friday, saying that he was neither against the “ultra rich” group nor trying to oppress them.

Instead, the prime minister stressed the government only intended to slash subsidies for the wealthiest 10 percent in Malaysia as they do not need such sedekah (charity) to survive.

"This is not the issue of being anti 'maha kaya' (‘ultra rich’). We are not imposing additional tax on them.

"What we meant to do is only to stop giving them subsidies. That’s all.

"Like what Tabung Haji did, they subsidise the rakyat (to go on pilgrimage). But if the person is already earning RM100,000 a month, he should not get the subsidy," Anwar (Pakatan Harapan-Tambun) told the Dewan Rakyat this morning during the Prime Minister's Question Time.

He was answering questions from Rosol Wahid (Perikatan Nasional-Hulu Terengganu) on the issue of egg and chicken prices.

Yesterday, Rosol, opposition chief Hamzah Zainudin, and several other PN MPs raised concerns over the prime minister's "maha kaya" remark in the budget speech.

Hamzah, in debating the budget proposal, claimed that Anwar's supposed "narrative" had painted a negative image of those deemed as the “ultra rich”.

Various subsidies

Meanwhile, during the Finance Ministry monthly gathering in Putrajaya this morning, Anwar also addressed the criticisms, describing the subsidies as a charity by the government to help the poor.

He said Malaysia spends RM81 billion annually for various subsidies, the highest in the region.

"Can we cancel all these subsidies? No, we cannot, because the rakyat would suffer.

"What is the meaning of subsidy? It is the government’s assistance to help ease the people's burden. Should this assistance benefit the ‘ultra rich’ too?

"But when I mention this, some would say I’m against the rich. But this is not about oppressing the rich, it just means that if you are already rich, you should not receive sedekah (charity).

"Subsidy is like charity from the government. But some people tried to spin this issue," he told the group of civil servants who attended the gathering.

Anwar added that the government also believed that it should not pressure the rich so much as doing so would discourage new investment and productivity.

In February, Deputy Finance Minister Ahmad Maslan said the government could save RM17 billion if the top 20 percent income earners (T20) do not receive fuel subsidies.

He said this was because the government spent RM50.8 billion in petrol, diesel and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) subsidies in 2022, of which 35 percent went to the T20.

The middle 40 percent income earners (M40) and bottom 40 percent (B40) used up 24 and 41 percent of fuel subsidies respectively.

According to the Department of Statistics of Malaysia (DOSM), the average income of T20 households is RM19,752 a month, followed by RM7,971 (M40) and RM3,401 (B40).

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