Rakyat Dibebankan Dahulu

There is no question that the Cabinet intends to approve increases to the domestic household and commercial electricity tariffs.  They have however put off the increase announcement twice this year, in the hope of being able to do so in more "conducive" environment.

However, at the same time, as the Prime Minister exhorts Malaysians to discard our "subsidy mentality", it didn't look like as if this "belt-tightening" exercise applies to large crony corporates in the power sector who continues to be able to milk maximum profits directly from Tenaga Nasional, and ultimately indirectly from the rakyat.

So I asked the following question in Parliament on the political will of the Government to restructure the Independent Power Producers (IPP) before burdening the rakyat.

Tony Pua meminta Perdana Menteri menyatakan sama ada kerajaan akan merombak semula kesemua perjanjian penjana kuasa bebas yang dijamin keuntungan yang lumayan sebelum kerajaan melaksanakan pengurangan subsidi elektrik kepada sektor komersil dan rakyat jelata.

As usual, the answer (below) provides all sorts of excuses why no such restructuring can be done and the IPPs will continue to make their billions of profits from the lobsided Power Purchasing Agreements signed and guaranteed by the Barisan Nasional government.  But when the Government becomes short of cash, they now tell you to change your subsidy mentality.  Certainly a "People First" government, burden the people first.

Untuk makluman Yang Berhormat, Kerajaan sentiasa menghormati sebarang perjanjian atau kontrak yang telah ditandatangani oleh pihak Kerajaan.  Oleh yang demikian, Kerajaan tiada rancangan untuk merombak semula atau menamatkan kontrak Perjanjian Pembelian Tenaga (PPA) secara unilateral dengan pihak IPP sebelum tamat tempoh kontrak tersebut.  Sebaliknya, pendekatan yang diambil oleh Kerajaan ialah supaya PPA tersebut dirundingkan semula.

Memandangkan rundingan semula PPA merupakan perkara yang rumit dan memerlukan tempoh masa yang agak lama untuk menentukan hasilnya, ia akan ditangani secara berasingan.